Stranger 2
by Serenity'sfire98
Summary: Emma Faith is back! What chaos will ensue during her second time-altering expedition? How will the Burgess kids' parents and the people of Colonial Burgess react? And what is with Pitch acting up again so soon?(What, did you think it'd all be fun and games? Not likely)Well, at least as long as Emma has Jack has Emma they'll be okay. Hopefully.(SEQUEL TO STRANGER! READ THAT FIRST!)
1. Chapter 1

**HELLO AGAIN MY LOVELIES! I AM BACK AND THIS STORY IS UP AND RUNNING! **

**Let's just hope it all goes as planned. I'm moving and my life has been in general crazy and my charger broke AGAIN. I'm on my mom's computer. **

**Also, in apology for the long wait this is a super long chapter, at least in my books it it especially for an introduction. **

**Be sure to comment and tell me what you think and if you're enjoying it so far! Thank you so much for all the support! **

**Enjoy!**

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Emma Faith Overland lounged in the North Pole, lying across the couch with her head in her brother's lap. Jack was half asleep, petting her hair. She smiled sleepily and yawned, curling onto her side so her face was hidden in his stomach.

"Hey Em?" he asked.

"Hmm?" she hummed, snuggling closer to him despite the fact she was fourteen physically, not seven. In fact, she was nearly three hundred years old. She'd just recently become a Guardian, a protector of the children of the Earth. She was the Guardian of Belief. At Tooth's insistence she'd cut her hair, so now it reached her waist, straight and loose. She looked like herself again, Jack had said.

"You know how you brought us all to watch that movie?" he asked. She nodded.

"What about the rest of our family? Mama and Uncle James and everyone else in the village. I mean, I know Mama saw me when we took Little You back, but…" he trailed off. Emma looked up at him.

"You want everyone to know what happened to us?" she asked. He nodded. She smiled.

"I think I can do that." she asked. He broke into a smile.

"Can we bring the kids' parents too? Mrs. Bennett is talking about sending Jamie to therapy for his belief." He said. She nodded.

"Yeah, I can do that easily. Tomorrow is good, I've got to meet up with Father Time next week to check on a couple of things. There are a few paradoxes going on about four centuries ago so we need to get that straightened out." She said. Jack nodded.

"Okay. I'll be late though, there's a snowstorm due in Russia tomorrow." He said.

"I'll time it so you come in before the scene with the memory box. I'd better go get ready and rest up. It takes a surprising amount of energy, the whole meddling with time thing." She said with a smile. He grinned as well and kissed her head.

"I'll see you tomorrow then." He told her. She smiled and nodded, standing up and flying out the skylight. Her wardrobe had changed since she became a Guardian. Instead of her former black pants, boots, and a red shirt she now wore brown leggings and the same red shirt. She had abandoned her shoes when they all but fell apart and she'd never bothered to get a new pair, stating she finally knew why Jack hated wearing them.

Renee Bennett sat with her two children at dinner, Jamie and Sophie chatting animatedly about how they were going to help Santa Claus prepare for Christmas since they were still getting kids to believe.

"Jamie, don't you think this is a little excessive?" she asked after putting her toddler to bed.

"Mom, they're real! Honestly, they are. We met them, all of us. Me and the twins and Cupcake and Pippa and Monty and Sophie." He said earnestly. There was a sudden flash of light and the three vanished, the other children and parents of Burgess vanishing along with them.

In colonial Burgess, Lucy Overland walked down to the village, meeting with her brother James. Emma scampered over to a few other children. Her cousins, Rose and Anne, and Thomas Bennett were there. Thomas's older brother James was talking with his new wife Emily. The people of Burgess milled around, an air of loss surrounding the village but they were pushing through.

"Emma seems to be doing well." James commented. Lucy smiled, nodding.

"Aye, much better than before. I still miss him, Jamie. I miss him so much." She said, a look of sorrow crossing her face. The look of heartbreak only a mother who had lost her child could have. James put a hand on her shoulder.

"He will always be with us, Lucy." He said. She smiled softly, seeing her daughter throw a snowball at Anne, initiating a free-for-all just like her brother would have. A snowball suddenly struck the woman in the head and she went stiff. James burst into laughter at his sister's expression. Within moments, half of Burgess was in the midst of a massive snowball fight, just like they used to. Still, they all felt a stab of loss when they turned to throw a lump of snow at a chestnut-haired teen, only to find he wasn't there.

That evening, huddled around fires for warmth, a flash of light filled the air and the people of Burgess vanished, all but Emma. The little girl picked a note up off the ground and smiled. She knew what was happening, and she was glad it was.

When the people of the same place centuries apart landed, at first there was panic.

"CALM DOWN!" everyone turned to see a fourteen year old girl standing in front of a large white screen. She smiled shyly at the Colonial people as the kids all cried out

"Emma!" and ran to hug her. She ruffled Jamie's hair and scooped Sophie into her arm, patting Monty's head before turning to the stunned others.

"I suppose I should introduce myself. My name is Emma Faith Overland, the Spirit of Time and the Guardian of Belief." She said. The Colonial people all gasped and she turned with a smile.

"It's good to see you all again. It's certainly been a while. Where are my manners? Sit, sit, you can all introduce yourselves to each other and I can explain. Of course, these six know what's going on. Just state your name, and your relationship to me and my brother… Or who you're parent to for you." She said with a smile, directing the last bit to the Burgess kids' parents. Mrs. Overland went first.

"I'm Margret Lucy Overland, mother to Emma and Jack." Se said, visibly confused.

"I'm James Overland, Lucy's brother. These are my daughters, Rose and Anne." He said, gesturing to the eight and six year old girls.

"James Bennett. Jack was my best friend. This is my little brother Thomas." He said. The grey-eyed eight year old waved.

"Emily Bennett. James' wife." She said, smiling at her new husband.

"Heather Bennett. James and Thomas' mother." A woman said in a soft voice. Emma turned to the Burgess kids and their parents.

"I'm Renee Bennett, Jamie and Sophie's mother." Jamie's mom said, smiling.

"Lucas Bennett, Renee's ex-husband. Jamie and Sophie's father." A brunette with grey eyes said.

"Ryan and Samantha Parson. We're Caleb and Claude's parents." A well-built man introduced. The curly-haired woman next to him smiled.

"I'm Alex Smith, Cupcake's father. This is her little brother, Jake." A rather lean man with short black hair and glasses said, holding a two year old on his hip.

"I'm Poppy Johnson, Pippa's older sister. These are our parents, Sarah and George." A sixteen year old said, gesturing to herself and then her parents.

"Monica Fredrickson. Monty's mother." A frail-looking blonde said, smiling at her son.

"We're Jamie and Sophie Bennett, Caleb and Claude Parson, Monty Fredrickson, and Pippa Johnson. We're Jack and Emma's first believers and friends." Jamie announced.

"Believers?" Renee echoed.

"Well, I suppose I should start at the beginning…"

"After that, the Guardians were chosen. Santa, the Easter Bunny ("Bunny! Hop, hop, hop!" Sophie exclaimed, jumping up and down), the tooth fairy, and the sandman. And eventually Jack Frost, and then me." She explained.

"How did you become a spirit?" her uncle asked, as Thomas asked who Jack Frost was.

"Well, his name is actually Jackson Overland Frost if that explains who he is. He was chosen. He's actually going to be here, he's just late. There's a snowstorm due in Russia today so he's working." She smiled. She turned to the screen.

"I actually didn't bring you here to talk. A few weeks ago I brought the Guardians, these six, and Jack to watch a movie called Rise of the Guardians, how Jack gets his Guardianship. He suggested I show it to you so no believers get sent to therapy, and so you all know we're okay." Emma said.

"What's a movie?" Anne asked.

"It's a moving picture with sound." Emma replied, sitting down. The kids all eagerly sat in the beanbags, even the Colonial ones. Everyone else found comfortable brown armchairs. Emma pressed "play" and the music began.


	2. Chapter 2

**YOU ASKED FOR AN UPDATE AND YOU SHALL RECIEVE! **

**Thank you for my 5 lovely reviewers thus far, and I hope you enjoy the fast updates while I can give them lol.**

**Also, I NEED ONE SHOT IDEAS! Any idea you have with my Stranger AU (Even if it doesn't involve Emma! It could just be two of the Guardians or more or Jack and one of them or whatever. Doesn't have to be centered around Emma) please leave in a review or PM me and I will write your request.**

**Also, any ideas for _this_ story would also be greatly appreciated. I really hope you like this one as much as the original. I"ll do my best with my crazy schedule. Life is finally starting to level out. (Let's hope it stays that way).**

**Be sure to check out my other stories and ENJOY.**

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"Alright then. Jack has to stop by before he comes here, so he can bring you with him." Emma said, handing him a snow globe. Cheering, Jamie and his friends and Sophie ran through gleefully.

"THey'll be safe at the North Pole." Emma assured their parents.

**D****ARKNESS**

**JACK (V.O.)  
****Darkness. **

The whole room, besides Emma of course, jumped.

**That's the first thing I remember. ****It was dark, and it was cold. And I was scared.**

Lucy had to bite her lip. She recognized her son's voice, the whole village did. It broke their hearts, knowing he didn't remember them.

_**The silhouette of a body appears as it drifts into a ray of  
**_**_light, refracted through water, which turns into..._**  
**_A MOON - SEEN IN REFLECTION ON A SHEET OF ICE  
_****_The moonlight intensifies almost magically, and the ice above _**  
**_begins to spider-web and crack._**

Emma flinched slightly, she still hated hearing that sound. Lucy reached over and put her hand on her daughter's. Emma smiled weakly.

_**EXT. FROZEN POND - NIGHT**_

**_Snow-covered trees in every direction. The ice in the pond _**  
**_continues to crack, until finally a hole splinters open.  
_****_A young man floats out of the water, bathed in the intense  
_****_moonlight. This is JACK FROST - thin, pale, barefoot, his _**  
**_tousled hair frosted white._**

"Oh Jack..." Emily whispered. Her husband wrapped an arm around her shoulders, grief for his best friend welling up in him. Jack's had brought their village closer than ever before, as everyone felt the loss deeply.

**JACK (V.O.)  
****But then...then I saw the moon.  
****It was so big and it was so bright,  
****and it seemed to chase the darkness **  
**away. ****And when it did...I wasn't ****scared anymore. **

"Jack wasn't ever afraid though." Anne said softly, as only a six year old can.

"Everyone's afraid of something, little one." Emma said.

**_Jack floats back down onto the ice as the hole closes up underneath him_.**

**JACK (V.O.)  
****Why I was there, and what I was **  
**meant to do - that I've never **  
**known. And a part of me wonders if **  
**I ever will.**

Renee looked at the other mothers. They all looked saddened, having children of their own.

**_Jack looks around, confused, then turns toward the moonlight  
_****_as it dims a bit._**  
**_Jack carefully treads across the ice until he hits something _**  
**_with his feet. He looks down, and at his feet is a wooden _**  
**_staff. _**

"That was mine. I gave it to his father. When he was ten Thaddeus passed away, and it was given to him." James Overland said, patting his sister's hand. She whimpered slightly at the mention of her husband.

"Thaddeus Burgess?" Monica asked. She was a history teacher at Burgess Elementary. Lucy nodded.

**_Curious, he picks it up. Almost immediately the  
_****_staff begins to glow a cold blue in his hands. Odd._**  
**_He almost drops it as the base of the staff comes in _**  
**_contact with the ground. _**_**Frost shoots out and spreads across  
**_**_the ice. Jack is visibly confused. _****_He touches a few trees with his staff sending frost up their _**  
**_trunks. Then he swings the staff again, more confident, as _**  
**_he begins to run across the frozen pond. _**  
**_Another swing, and a gust of wind swirls him high up into the _**  
**_air. _**_**Jack floats for a moment only to fall back down to  
**__**earth and into the trees. Jack grabs hold of a tree branch and pulls himself up to see a small town off in the distance.**_

Everyone greaks into giggles or smiles at Jack as he rediscovered the world, and learned about his powers. Lucy winced when he landed in the tree.

"Don't worry, Mama, it takes a lot to hurt a spirit.

_**EXT. BURGESS SETTLEMENT - TOWN CENTER - CONTINUOUS**_

**_A collection of simple timber houses with thatched roofs. _**  
**_Jack comes in for a landing, and it's a rocky one. He stands _**  
**_up, still elated, and brushes himself off. _**

The kids giggle as Jack has to untangle himself from his cloak.

**_As Jack makes his way into town, settlers are warming their _**  
**_hands by campfire. Jack doesn't recognize anyone._**

Any signs of laughter vanish.

**JACK  
****(to the townsfolk)**  
**Hello. Hello. Good evening, **  
**ma'am. **  
**(beat)**  
**Ma'am?**

Said young woman gave a choked sob, trying not to cry. Emily gripped James' hand.

"He walked right passed us." she whispered.

**_The settlers walk past Jack, not noticing him. Jack crouches  
_****_down as a YOUNG BOY runs toward him._**

"Hey it's me!" Thomas exclaimed.

**JACK**  
**Oh, ah, excuse me, can you tell me **  
**where I am?**

**_The boy runs right through Jack, as if he were a ghost. Jack  
_****_staggers back in shock. He's speechless, as if the wind had _**  
**_been knocked out him. _**_**His emotions causing it to snow.**_

Thomas stared at the screen, stunned tears filling his eyes. He had run _through _his brother's best friend, the brother of the girl who saved his life.

"Thomas, you didn't know. It wasn't your fault." Emma said softly, kneeling in front of him.

"B-But-" he stammered.

"Thomas, you couldn't have known." she said, cupping his cheek and smiling before returning to her seat.

**JACK  
****Hello! Hello!**

_**Townsfolk continue to pass through Jack, unaware of his  
**_**_presence. Shaken, Jack turns and retreats into the forest._**

"How could we have just walked through him?" Victoria exclaimed, her husband John having to struggle to keep her from hysterics. Jack had crushed on her for a few years, until John had won her heart and hand.

"You didn't believe in him. It was as if he didn't exist... I didn't even see him back then." Emma trailed off.

**JACK (V.O.)  
****My name is Jack Frost - how do I **  
**know that? The moon told me so. **  
**But that was all he ever told me. **  
**And that was a long, long time ago.**

"So he had no memories? He was just left alone to wander?" Renee asked, incredulous. Emma nodded.

"Why? No one should be put through that, but especially not a child!" she exclaimed.

"I went through the same, but I found my memories much sooner. It only took me fifty years." Emma said softly.

"How long did it take Jack?" Emily asked.

"Three hundred. I'd have told him but... It's a long story." she said with a wry smile.

_**The words 'Rise of the Guardians' fill the screen until the next scene loads.**_


	3. Chapter 3

**Okay, so I realize a lot of you may be confused as to who a lot of the people in this story are. I _did_ bring all of Jack's village, however most of the story will be centered around those introduced in the first chapter, in other words his family and closest friends. Others (Such as Victoria and John from the last chapter) will be mentioned, however, as I see fit. If this confuses anyone I'm really sorry but I think after a few chapters it'll start making more sense. Pretty much if anyone who wasn't introduced comes in, I will state who they are and what their relationship to Jack was. I thought I'd made it fairly clear who Victoria was, but I had a few people ask me. Sorry for the confusion.**

**Now that that's over with, enjoy the new chapter!**

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_**FIERY GYPSY VIOLIN MUSIC as we move through clouds to reveal  
**_**_a MASSIVE ICE CANYON, and just around a bend, the incredible _**  
**_hidden fortress of NORTH, aka SANTA CLAUS._**

"He is real!" one girl gasped.

"I knew it." Thomas said, grinning.

"Wow..." his brother breathed.

**INT. NORTH'S WORKSHOP - DUSK  
****_We glimpse a familiar-looking RED JACKET and CAP with white _**  
**_trim on a coat hanger just as a pair of tongs SLAM a block of _**  
**_ice onto a stone work table-_**

_**IN QUICK CUTS: A CHAINSAW shears the block in half, spraying  
**_**_ice. North lifts up the chainsaw revealing a massive tatoo _**  
**_on his arm, the word NAUGHTY clearly visible.  
_**_**Three ELVES huddle in a doorway around a plate of cookies,  
**_**_each licking their own tasty morsel._**

A couple of kids giggled, but Renee was sharing a look with the other parents. Santa Claus had tattoos!?

**NORTH (O.S.)  
****Still waiting for cookies!**

_**As North crosses the background, the elves lower the cookies  
**_**_from their mouths, their faces frozen in fear._**  
**_The elves duck out of the way as North launches himself _**  
**_across the floor on his rolling chair - CLOSE as his huge _**  
**_HAND gropes furiously among his WORK TOOLS, finally grabbing _**  
**_a miniature HAMMER. _**_**As North's humming along with his music,  
**_**_delicately CHISELING into the ice, _**_**we see a second arm sleeve  
**__**tattoo, the word NICE clearly visible-  
**__**His INTENSE BLUE EYE magnified in a JEWELER'S EYEPIECE -  
**__**A delicate SCULPTING TOOL cuts fine details into the ice-  
**_**_His hands place the finished piece on a curving ICE TRACK: An _**  
**_ice LOCOMOTIVE. It belches ice vapor and chugs down the _**  
**_track, picking up speed-_**

The Colonial kids all watch in wonder. There was a... Thing! Of ice! That moved on it's own!

**NORTH  
****Yes!**

_**North's hand grabs a cookie from a plate held up by the two **_**_Elves. _**  
**_One of the elves gives his cohort a look and points to the _**  
**_plate as it chews with a mouth full of food, to which it then _**  
**_unfurls its tongue and lets the half eaten morsels spill out _**  
**_onto the plate._**

"EW!" Rose exclaimed, covering her eyes. The women all looked ready to gag, and the men were trying not to join them.

"That's why I never eat the cookies." Emma said, chuckling.

**NORTH  
****Ah, finally!**

_**He takes a bite and leans toward the ice track.  
**__**He chuckles **_**_as the train hits a loop, and launches off a ramp into midair _**  
**_\- then WINGS unfold - JET ENGINES sprout and ignite and the _**  
**_train lifts off the track-_**

"I'll admit, that's pretty cool." Lucas said, chuckling.

"I'll agree with you there." Renee agreed with her ex husband.

**_Suddenly, the DOOR is thrown open by one of North's concerned _**  
**_YETIS, sending the flying ice locomotive skidding across the _**  
**_floor in pieces._**

"NO!" every kid exclaimed, covering their eyes.

**YETI  
****Arghbal...**

**NORTH  
****Ach! **

_**The yeti cries out covering his mouth in shame. North cries  
**_**_out, devastated. The yeti, equally emotional, lets out _**  
**_another whimper. _**_**North looks down at the broken toy and  
**_**_takes a moment to collect himself._**

**NORTH  
****How many times have I told you to **  
**knock?**

**YETI  
****Warga blarghgha!**

**NORTH  
****What...? The Globe?**

"The what?" James Overland asked.

"The Globe. It's a model of the world, and lights cover it. Each light represents a child who believes. I'm the one who protects that belief, belief in things that make life important." Emma said.

"What things?" Thomas asked. It sounded like his friend grew up to be someone really important.

"Hope, Wonder, Dreams, Memories, and Fun. Bunny is the Guardian of Hope, North is the Guardian of Wonder, Sandy is the Guardian of Dreams, Tooth is the Guardian of Memories, and Jack Frost is the Guardian of Fun." Emma replied.

"Fitting." her mother said, smiling as she remembered her mischievous firstborn.

_**North leaps up - draws a HUGE SCIMITAR from its sheath and **_**_heads out-_**

**INT. NORTH'S GLOBE ROOM - CONTINUOUS  
****_A sea of tiny BELLS on the heads of panicking elves part as _**  
**_North's huge boots stomp through._**

**NORTH  
****Shoo with your pointy heads. Why **  
**are you always under boot?**

_**He pushes his way past a couple of his YETI WORKERS -  
**_**_they're looking up in fear at - Avid GLOBE OF BELIEF_**  
**_Covered with LIGHTS blanketing the continents. But North _**  
**_notices that all at once, HUNDREDS OF LIGHTS suddenly go out._**

"Ooh, I was so mad when I felt that. He tampered with the Globe so it looked like belief was fading. I nearly panicked until I realized that it was tampered. Then I almost hunted our favorite Boogeyman down myself. Manny told me not to... Said that it was Jack who needed to do it... I went and holed up here for that couple of days, watching everything from here." Emma said.

"Why didn't you help?" Anne asked. Emma had to hide a wince.

"Jack and I... Well, we didn't see each other for three hundred years. I'll explain later." she said, gesturing to the movie.

**NORTH  
****What is this?**

_**Now MORE LIGHTS, in GREATER NUMBERS, as if something is  
**_**_snuffing them out by the thousands. North's concern grows._**

**NORTH  
****(to Yeti)**  
**Have you checked the axis? Is **  
**rotation balanced?**

**YETI  
****(shrugs shoulders)**  
**Wardle bawddrel-**

_**Before the Yeti can finish, a WIND whips up from out of  
**_**_nowhere - North stares in outrage as a blanket of SWIRLING _**  
**_BLACK SAND, crawls over the lights, and shrouds the ENTIRE _**  
**_GLOBE in inky DARKNESS-_**

The kids all ducked or raced to their parents. Anne huddled in her sister's lap, but the eight year old was as scared as she was. Emma walked over and pulled her cousins into her arms. Soon she was surrounded by the kids who she had played and grown up with, who were now all about half her age.

"Oh my God." Poppy whispered, covering her mouth. Her little sister had been involved in all this?

She was having a serious talk with Pippa later.

_**The elves scurry in a panic, **_**_then all at once the BLACK SAND _**  
**_WHOOSHES UP off the Globe - rushes up through the ceiling as _**  
**_the remaining sand bursts into a puff of smoke and dissipates _**  
**_into the air -  
_**_**As the wind dies, the scattered pieces of debris settle to  
**_**_the ground, and the globes lights come back on, North whirls _**  
**_to see a HUGE SHADOW flash across the floors and curving _**  
**_walls of his fortress. It quickly disappears, leaving _**  
**_nothing but the distant ECHO of...LAUGHTER?  
_**_**North is frozen, looking up into the darkness, gravely:**_

**NORTH  
****Can it be?**  
**(then calls off)**  
**Dingle!**

**_A group of elves step forward gleefully pointing to  
_****_themselves, as if they're all "Dingle". The excitement _**  
**_quickly turns to confusion._**

**NORTH  
****Make preparations! We are going to **  
**have company.**

"Who was that?" Emily gasped.

"That was Pitch Black." Emma replied gravely.

_**North reaches out for a large EMERGENCY LEVER, TWISTS and  
**_**_PRESSES IT-_**_**Avid Globe pulses with ENERGY, which lights up and ZOOMS UP **_  
**_the AXIS SHAFT toward the roof-_**

**EXT. NORTH POLE - CONTINUOUS  
****_From the tallest spire of North's fortress, NORTHERN LIGHT _**  
**_ENERGY radiates outward: for the first time in decades, the _**  
**_GUARDIANS' CALL GOES OUT!_**

"This is big, isn't it?" Samantha asked. Emma nodded.

"You have no idea."


	4. Chapter 4

**You're all loving these fast updates, aren't you? We'll see how long they last, considering I'm moving this week. I should actually be packing now but I had this chapter nearly finished so... Here you go! Thank you so much all of my lovely reviewers! If you have any one-shot ideas, PLEASE tell me! Review, they make me happy! I update faster when I'm happy!**

* * *

**INT. CHILD'S BEDROOM - NIGHT**

**_A little fairy, carrying a coin, flies above the head of a _**  
**_sleeping child. She quickly ducks under the pillow and comes _**  
**_out the other side with a tooth in hand._**

"I just lost my tooth!" Anne exclaimed. She opened her mouth.

"Ee?"

**EXT. TOOTH'S PALACE - DAY**

**_Hundreds of fairies fly toward a hollowed out mountain, this _**  
**_is Tooth's palace and it's a majestic site._**

**INT. TOOTH'S PALACE  
****_Dozens of tiny FAIRIES flit about. Teeth are filed away in _**  
**_tiny wooden drawers. Coins are handed out._**

**TOOTH (O.S.)  
****Chicago, Sector 6 - 37 molars, 22 **  
**bicuspids, 18 central incisors. **  
**Moscow, Sector 9 - 22 incisors, 18 **  
**premolars: Uh oh, heavy rain **  
**advisory! **  
**Des Moines, we've got a cuspid at **  
**23 Maple. Head out!**

"That's impressive." James Overland admitted.

_**A hive of activity, and at the center a winged figure barks  
**_**_out orders like a harried air-traffic controller. This is _**  
**_TOOTH. A Mini Tooth Fairy flies up to Tooth as thousands of _**  
**_tiny MINI TOOTH FAIRIES continue their work behind them. _**

**TOOTH (O.S.)  
****Wait!**

_**And suddenly everything stops. Tooth whips around, and we  
**_**_finally see her beautiful FACE. _**  
**_she's holding up a little tooth, and gazing at it with dreamy _**  
**_adoration. The surrounding fairies tweet with excitement._**

**TOOTH (CONT'D)  
****It's her first tooth. Have you **  
**ever seen a more adorable lateral **  
**incisor in all of your life?!**  
**(gasps)**  
**Look how she flossed!**

A few chuckled. Of course the Tooth Fairy would be crazy obsessed with teeth.

_**The fairies' tweets turn to concern, turning Tooth's  
**_**_attention to North's AURORA SIGNAL stretching across the sky. _**  
**_She gasps, and flies off like a rocket toward the source of _**  
**_the signal, accompanied by a few of her ranking fairies._**

**NORTH (OVERVOICE)  
****My fellow Guardians - ****It is our job  
****to watch over the children of the **  
**world, and keep them safe - to **  
**bring wonder, hope and dreams.  
****And so, I've called us all here for  
****one reason, and one reason only - **  
**the children are in danger.**

"You should get Jack to help. He loves kids." James Bennett said. Emma chuckled. Renee shared a look with her friends and they all shrugged.

**EXT./INT. CHILD'S BEDROOM  
****_We pull out from the face of a sleeping child to reveal a _**  
**_stream of sand swirling overhead. It's a dream and it's taken _**  
**_the shape of a child playing soccer.  
_**_**We FOLLOW the Dreamsand stream out his window and up into the  
**_**_sky where we see DOZENS of strands of sand descending to _**  
**_earth. Keep following up, through majestic CLOUDS...  
_**_**...to reveal a small, GLOWING GOLDEN CLOUD of Dreamsand  
**_**_shimmering among the clouds, trailing the golden threads. _**  
**_The strands are being controlled by a small portly figure, _**  
**_THE SANDMAN. _**

"Sandy's the best. He was the only Guardian to ever talk to Jack and I. The others were holed up in their hideouts... They sort of forgot how to think outside their jobs, after however many centuries." Emma said.

_**Suddenly, North's emergency signal zips by. The  
**_**_Sandman turns to look and his eyes narrow, visibly concerned. _**  
**_Sandy closes his eyes and in an instant the Dreamsand cloud _**  
**_suddenly SWIRLS around him, changing form into a small _**  
**_BIPLANE, with Sandy in the cockpit. He BARREL ROLLS the _**  
**_plane into a dizzying dive through the spectacular cloudscape _**  
**_and flies off into the distance._**

**NORTH (CONT)  
****An enemy we have kept at bay for  
****centuries has finally decided to **  
**strike back. We alone can stop **  
**him.**

"They'll need help. It always happens in stories." Rose said.

**INT. EGG TUNNEL  
****_A few EASTER EGGS pop up out of the ground; their little legs _**  
**_carry them out of the way of a fast approaching object. _**  
**_Speeding along through a subterranean tunnel, we can barely _**  
**_keep up with a DIMLY-LIT FIGURE as it races at blinding _**  
**_speed, leaping and zigzagging through a series of TUNNELS -_**

**EXT. A SNOWY EXPANSE IN THE NORTH POLE  
****_A hole opens in the snow, and a pair of rabbit ears pops out. _**  
**_A huge rabbit climbs out and brushes off the snow, annoyed. _**  
**_The six foot tall figure is BUNNYMUND._**

"THAT'S the Easter Bunny?" James Bennett gasped. Emma laughed.

"Yep!"

**BUNNYMUND  
****Ah, it's freezing.**

_**He shivers with cold, then goes slogging through the snow.**_

**BUNNYMUND (CONT'D)  
****I can't feel my feet! I can't feel **  
**my feet!**

_**In the distance is North's ornately decorated and dimly lit  
**__**palace built into the side of a mountain of ice.**_

**INT. GLOBE ROOM - NIGHT  
****_Sandy's biplane circles the massive chamber, leaving trails _**  
**_of Dreamsand._**

**NORTH (O.S.)  
****Cookies? Eggnog, anyone?**

**BUNNYMUND (O.S.)  
****Oh, this better be good, North.**

**TOOTHIANA  
****(to her fairies)**  
**Montreal, sector six: ten **  
**premolars, eight incisors and **  
**twelve canines. Steer clear of the **  
**wild goose migration.**

"Does she ever stop and breathe?" Emily asked.

"She's gotten better." Emma shrugged. She was sitting between her mom and her uncle, holding her mother's hand. She hadn't seen her mom in nearly three hundred years. She missed her family.

**NORTH  
****Sandy, thank you for coming. **

_**Sandy descends from the plane and floats to the ground. He  
**_**_joins North, Bunny and Tooth as they walk through the Globe _**  
**_Room. Sand glyphs appear above Sandy's head communicating _**  
**_that he is busy and has a lot of work to do._**

**NORTH  
****(to Sandy)**  
**I know, I know, but I obviously **  
**wouldn't have called you all here **  
**unless it was serious.**

_**North, Bunny, Tooth and Sandy reach the center of the room.  
**_**_Tooth does her best to shush her mini-fairies._**

**NORTH (CONT'D)  
****The Boogie Man was here - at the **  
**Pole.**

_**North points to the globe. The other Guardians turn to look.**_

**TOOTH  
****(shocked)**  
**Pitch? Pitch Black? Here?!**

**NORTH  
****Yes! There was black sand covering **  
**the globe.**

**BUNNYMUND  
****(confused)**  
**What, what...what do you mean black **  
**sand?**

**NORTH  
****And then a shadow!**

**BUNNYMUND  
****Hold on, hold on, I thought you **  
**said you saw Pitch.**

**NORTH  
****Well, ah, not exactly...**

"I think that's close enough." Lucy said darkly. Her instincts as a mother were telling her this guy was BAD. NEWS.

She hoped her children wouldn't be involved.

The modern families were hoping the same thing.

**BUNNYMUND  
****Not exactly? Can you believe this **  
**guy?**

_**Bunny turns to Sandy, who shrugs while forming a Dreamsand  
**_**_question mark above his head._**

**BUNNYMUND  
****Yeah, you said it, Sandy.**

_**Bunny goes back to painting one of his Easter eggs.**_

**NORTH  
****Look, he is up to something very **  
**bad. I feel it, in my belly.**

**BUNNYMUND  
****(his eyes narrow)**  
**Hang on, hang on, you mean to say, **  
**you summoned me here THREE DAYS **  
**BEFORE EASTER - because of your **  
**belly? ****Mate, if I did this to you  
****three days before Christmas-**

**TOOTH  
****(to her fairies)**  
**Argentina. Priority alert! A **  
**batch of bicuspids in Buenos Aires.**

**NORTH  
****Please. Bunny. Easter is not **  
**Christmas.**

**BUNNYMUND  
****Here we go...**

_**North grabs Bunny's painted egg, casually juggling it in his  
**_**_hand as he walks off. Meanwhile Sandy, who is being served _**  
**_eggnog by a yeti, suddenly notices something high above._**

**BUNNYMUND (O.S.)  
****(laughs)**  
**North, I, I don't have time for **  
**this. I've still got two million **  
**eggs to finish up.**

"That's a lot of eggs." Ryan commented.

_**The moon rises into view, high up in the ceiling; its rays of  
**_**_light begin to shine brightly through as they cascade down _**  
**_the walls of the globe room._**

**NORTH (O.S.)  
****No matter how much you paint, is **  
**still egg!**

"But it has chocolate in it!" Poppy exclaimed, speaking for every kid in the room.

_**Sandman points to the moon unsuccessfully to get the others'  
**_**_attention._**

**BUNNYMUND  
****Look, mate, I'm dealing with **  
**perishables. Right. You've got **  
**all year to prepare.**

**TOOTH  
****(to her fairies)**  
**Pittsburg, boy eight, two molars. **  
**Saltwater taffy.**

_**Sandy puts his fingers in his mouth to whistle, a silent musical note forming above his head.**_

**NORTH  
****(to Bunny)**  
**Why are rabbits always so nervous.**

**BUNNYMUND  
****And why are you always such a **  
**blowhard!**

**TOOTH (O.S.)  
****(to her fairies)**  
**Ontario, sector nine: five canines, **  
**two molars, and fourteen incisors. **  
**Is that all in one house?**

_**Sandy waves a sand flag above his head, pointing and jumping  
**_**_up and down as the moonlight continues to fill the room._**

**NORTH  
****(turning his attention)**  
**Tooth! Can't you see we're trying **  
**to argue.**

**TOOTH  
****Sorry, not all of us get to work **  
**one night a year. Am I right, **  
**Sandy? **

_**Sandy tries to signal with a golden arrow, pointing toward  
**_**_the ceiling, but to no avail as the others continue their _**  
**_bickering.  
_**_**Sandy thinks Tooth has noticed for a split  
**_**_second, __but then -_**

**TOOTH  
****(to her fairies)**  
**San Diego, sector two! Five **  
**incisors, a bicuspid and a really **  
**loose molar on stand-by.**

"Poor Sandman." Heather said, fighting a smile at the mute's attempts at gaining his companion's attention.

**BUNNYMUND  
****(mocking)**  
**Come on, mate, Pitch went out with **  
**the dark ages. We made sure of **  
**that - remember?**

"The Dark Ages? What does that have to do with it." Monica echoed.

"The age after the Forgotten Age. When Kozmotis Pitchner fell and became Pitch Black, he ended the Golden Age he had fought his whole life to protect. He was trapped for many centuries, but then he was freed and the Dark Ages began, and the first Guardians were chosen. The Dark Ages ended with Pitch was driven underground, but he gained a thirst for revenge. And he finally gained enough power to come out." Emma said.

**NORTH (O.S.)  
****I know it was him. We have serious **  
**situation!**

**BUNNYMUND (O.S.)  
****Well, I've got a serious situation **  
**with some eggs.**

**TOOTH (O.S.)  
****Hey, I hate to interrupt the, "We **  
**work so hard once a year club" but **  
**could we concentrate on the matter-**

_**Sandy can't take it anymore, grabs an elf by his hat, and  
**_**_vigorously shakes it's bell.  
_**_**The other Guardians are finally silenced and all turn to look at Sandy, who points up, a sand  
**_**_crescent moon forming above his head. The dizzy elf staggers _**  
**_away. Finally the others turn to see the shaft of moonlight _**  
**_as it concentrates on the circle between them._**

**NORTH  
****Aah! Man in Moon! Sandy, why **  
**didn't you say something?**

_**Sandy gives him a deadpan stare, Dreamsand smoke shoots out  
**_**_his ears._**

"Never make Sandy mad." Emma advised.

**NORTH  
****(to Man in Moon)**  
**It's been a long time old friend! **  
**What is big news?**

_**Everyone looks to the center of the intense spot of  
**_**_moonlight, the light ebbs away, leaving a dark spot -_**  
**_\- which resolves into the shadowed silhouette of PITCH. The _**  
**_Guardians look on, stunned._**

**BUNNYMUND  
****It is Pitch.**

**_North pats his belly and gives Bunny a look._**

**NORTH  
****(back up to the moon)**  
**Manny...what must we do?**

**_Man in Moon answer, the shadow of Pitch disappears and the circle of  
_****_moonlight intensifies and SHRINKS, concentrating further _**  
**_illuminating an ORNATE SYMBOL on the floor, at the center of _**  
**_their circle. The symbol rises out of the ground revealing a _**  
**_large gem at the head of a pillar._**

**TOOTH  
****Ah, guys, you know what this means? **

**_The moons light suddenly refracts through the gem casting _**  
**_light all over the chamber._**

**NORTH  
****(awed)**  
**He's choosing a new Guardian.**

"Jack?" Lucy whispered.

**BUNNYMUND  
****What?! Why?**

**NORTH  
****Must be big deal! Manny thinks we **  
**need help!**

**BUNNYMUND  
****(annoyed)**  
**Since when do we need help?!**

"Sure of himself, isn't he?" James Bennett said, crossing his arms. He and Jack had never liked the people with large egos.

**TOOTH  
****I wonder who it's gonna be?**

**_A Dreamsand Four-Leaf clover forms above Sandy's head._**

**TOOTH (CONT'D)  
****Maybe the Leprechaun?**

**BUNNYMUND  
****Please not the groundhog, please **  
**not the groundhog.**

**_Then A BRIGHT FLASH, a rush of WIND- and a FIGURE resolves  
_****_over the central pillar: slight, hooded, bearing a familiar _**  
**_hooked STAFF._**

**NORTH  
****Jack Frost.**

The Colonial children all cheered.

"There's no way they can loose!" Thomas exclaimed. Emma smiled at their faith in her brother.

**_The Mini-Teeth all sigh and swoon as the Guardians stand  
_****_there, stunned._**

**BUNNYMUND  
****Ah, I take it back! The **  
**Groundhog's fine!**

Immediately the people of Colonial Burgess, especially the children and Jack's family, all scowl at the screen.

"Am I going to have a problem with the overgrown rabbit?" Lucy asked.

"For a little while, probably. He gets his act together... eventually..." Emma said.

"If he hurts my son I'll make the whole village rabbit stew." the mother replied.

Emma was suddenly very glad she'd left the Guardians at their homes.

**TOOTHIANA  
****(caught admiring Jack)  
****Well, ah, as long he helps to  
****ah...to protect the children, **  
**right?**

**BUNNYMUND  
****Jack Frost!? He doesn't care about **  
**children! **

Jaws drop. The temperature in the room seemed to lower slightly.

"He doesn't know a thing about my nephew!" James Overland exclaimed.

"Jack cares about practically nothing _but_ children!" Heather exclaimed, taking offense on the behalf of the best friend of her son.

"He died for his sister. He loves children." Emily whispered.

**All he does is freeze  
****water pipes and mess with my egg **  
**hunts. Right? He's an **  
**irresponsible, selfish...**

"Emma Overland, you are going to bring this rabbit here and I am going to have a very stern talk with him." Lucy snarled angrily. Emma cringed.

"I'd rather you not kill him, Mama." she said.

"I won't. I'll just make sure he never says a negative word about my son ever again." she growled.

"Mama, later." Emma soothed.

**NORTH  
****Guardian.**

**_This stops Bunnymund in his tracks._**

**BUNNYMUND  
****Jack Frost is many things, but he **  
**is not a Guardian.**

there was a soft snarl, and everyone turned to see James Bennett glaring at the rabbit on the screen.

_**As we turn toward the face of the hooded figure.**_


	5. Chapter 5

**Hello! I origionally wasn't going to put an author's note on this chapter, but guess what! My one-shot series for this AU is up, titled Change. I am taking requests for it, and I have a couple of ideas lined up! Whoo! A shoutout to all of my lovely reviewers!**

**Enjoy****!**

* * *

_**EXT. ST. PETERSBURG - NIGHT  
**__**a hooded figure with a familiar looking staff rests atop a Post Office box on the  
**__**opposite end of the street. The man touches that staff to the ground, sending a streak of frost across the street.  
**__**A RUSSIAN BOY approaches a water fountain, turns the handle and moves in for a sip.  
**__**But as he does, the water freezes  
**__**magically, and the boy's tongue is stuck to the frozen water.  
**__**His friends can't help but laugh.**_

_**RUSSIAN BOY  
**__**(tongue stuck to frozen ice)  
**__**Aahhhhh...!**_

_**A mail man walks across the street and a PATH OF ICE magically appears  
**__**under his feet. He scrambles and BOOM! - lands on his butt**_

"There he is." James Overland whispered so himself, hearing the achingly familiar laugh of his nephew.

"I never thought I'd hear that sound again." Lucy whispered.

"What happened, do you think?" Monica whispered to Sarah, who shrugged.

"It sounds like he died." George whispered back.

_**Just behind the man, we see a TRAIL OF FROST climb up the side of a building. We  
**__**stay on the frost as it moves up along a rain pipe, and through the windows we see...  
**__**A boy trying to feed his gold fish, but a layer of ice suddenly forms along the water surface  
**__**and prevents the fish from reaching its food  
**__**We move along the side of the building...  
**__**A writer in his study sits next to a stack of papers. The window suddenly swings open and a gust  
**__**of wind sends the papers flying out the window. We move along the building, across clothes and  
**__**power lines as they freeze. We continue to move up, and finally discover the culprit. Jack Frost makes  
**__**his way atop a cathedral spire and takes in the view; the full moon bathes the city in moonlight.**_

**JACK  
****(amused)  
****Ah, now that, was fun.  
****(beat)  
****Hey wind...**

_**Jack chuckles as he calls the wind. The trees begin to sway and leaves fly into the air. Jack grabs  
**__**hold of the spire, smiling as the wind blows past.**_

**JACK  
****take me home!**

"Home?" Lucy echoed.

"He found our cabin abandoned, about twenty years after he became a spirit." Emma replied.

_**Jack lets go and the wind carries him into the air and through the clouds Night turns to day as Jack flies from one horizon to the other. **_

**JACK  
****Woooooohooooooooo!**

_**EXT. BURGESS - DAY  
**__**Jack falls through the clouds, smiling, toward the town of Burgess.**_

**JACK  
****SNOOOOOWWWW DAAAAYYYYYYY!**

_**Jack continues down and zooms through the streets. Pedestrians clench their jackets and reach for their  
**__**hats as gusts of wind, snow, and frost are left in Jack's wake.**_

_**EXT. FROZEN POND  
**__**Jack flies in, and with the wind behind him skates across an all too familiar pond. As the wind zips across the  
**__**pond it knocks a book out of the hands of a little boy walking alone, this is JAMIE**_

Renee smiles fondly at her son on screen.

**JAMIE  
****whoa, whoa.**

_**Jamie goes to pick up the book and we get a glimpse of the cover- "THEY'RE OUT THERE!-MYSTERIES,  
**__**MYTHICAL CREATURES AND THE UNEXPLAINED PHENOMENA." Jack flies into the frame and lands beside Jamie.**_

**JACK  
****Huh. That looks interesting. Good book?**

_**Suddenly twins CLAUDE and CALEB come barreling past them, rough-housing and  
**__**laughing as they slam each other into drifts (all the boys are 8).**_

Samantha and Ryan rolled their eyes at the twins.

"They're always like that." Samantha said.

**CLAUDE AND CALEB  
****Alright! Yeah! Waahoo! Snooow daaaay!**

_**Jack calls after the boys...**_

**JACK  
****You're welcome!**

**JAMIE  
****(Goes running after them)  
****Hey guys, wait up! Are you guys coming to the egg hunt Sunday?**

**CALEB  
Yeah, free candy!**

**CLAUDE**  
**I hope we can find the eggs with all this snow!**

_**Caleb stuffs a handful of snow down his brother's jacket.**_

_**EXT. JAMIE'S BACKYARD- DAY  
**__**The kids arrive at the fence of Jamie's house. Jamie opens up a secret plank, and  
**__**heads into his yard. Claude and Caleb are still messing with each other. Meanwhile, Jack  
**__**walks unseen along the top of the fence.**_

Renee clapped her hands over her mouth, remembering what she said. Oh God...

**CALEB  
****(walla)**

**Stop!**

**CLAUDE  
****(walla)  
****No, you stop!**

**JAMIE  
****Whoa, it says here that they found Big Foot hair samples and DNA in Michigan. that's like, super close!**

**CLAUDE  
****Here we go again.**

"He'll believe almost anything." Renee said, chuckling fondly.

"There's nothing wrong with believing. And it's really hard not to believe in something you've seen." Emma told her.

_**Jamie arrives at his front gate, sled in hand while SOPHIE (Jamie's 2-year-old sister in fairy wings)  
**__**sits down on their greyhound as it lies in the yard.**_

**JAMIE  
****You saw the video too Claude. He's out there!**

**CALEB  
****That's what you said about aliens.**

**CLAUDE  
****And the Easter Bunny.**

**JAMIE  
****(grabs his sled)  
****The Easter Bunny is real.**

**JACK  
****Oh he's real alright. Real annoying, real grumpy, and really full of himself.**

"What happened between those two?" Poppy asked.

"Jack caused a blizzard on Easter. It was an accident."

_**Jack hops off the fence and walks among the kids, peering over their shoulders as they play in the yard.**_

**CLAUDE  
****(laughs)  
****Come on, you guys believe anything.**

**SOPHIE  
****(giggles)  
****EASTER BUNNY! HOP-HOP-HOP  
****(falls over)  
****Ow!**

_**Sophie begins to cry. **_

**JAMIE  
****Mom! Sophie fell again!**

_**JAMIE'S MOM comes outside. Caleb, alongside his brother, stands at the front gate and calls out to Jamie.**_

**JAMIE'S MOM  
****You okay, Soph.**

**CLAUDE  
****Are we sledding or what?**

**JAMIE'S MOM  
****Jamie, hat? We don't want Jack Frost nipping at your nose.**

"It's an expression... It's been around for ages. It never even crossed my mind..." Sarah said, feeling guilty.

**Jamie's mom plunks the hat on his head, tweaks his nose.**

**JAMIE  
****Who's Jack Frost?**

**JAMIE'S MOM  
****No one, honey, it's just an expression.**

"I am so, so sorry." Renee breathed. She couldn't imagine how his mother felt... She felt her heart break. _What if that had been Jamie?_

"There's no way you could have known." Emma soothed.

**JACK  
****(smile drops- offended)  
****Hey.**

_**Jack jumps down from the fence as the boys head off.**_

**JACK  
****(miffed)  
****Who's Jack Frost.**

_**Jack reaches down and grabs a hand full of snow from off the ground .With his  
**__**palm open, jack uses his magic to form a perfect snowball.  
**__**He then puckers his lips, and blows onto it with his icy breath. The snowball  
**__**turns a light shade of blue. There's something going on here.**_

_**EXT. SNOWY HILL  
**__**WHOOSH!- the snowball goes flying through the air and - BOOF! - the snowball hits Jamie smack in the back of the head.  
**__**Jamie looks up, peeved, and turns.  
**__**Then we watch as his face changes... a mischievous sparkle comes into his eyes.  
**__**A big smile. Make no mistake, something magical has just happened.**_

"That's what happened today. He threw a snowball at me. I felt happy all of a sudden, like he was there." Lucy whispered.

**JAMIE  
****(laughing)  
****Okay, who threw that?**

_**Jack flies in and lands among the group of kids.**_

**JACK  
****Well, wasn't Bigfoot kiddo.**

_**Jamie scans the horizon for the culprit. His eyes land on a couple kids making snow barricades.  
**__**MONTY (oddball with big glasses) with his back turned suddenly gets a  
**__**snowball to the back of the head, knocking him face first into the ground.**_

**MONTY  
****ow!**

Monica chuckled at her son.

_**PIPPA (brainy, pigtails, pink hat) steps forward and - BOOF!  
**__**A magical snowball from Jack hits her, knocking her back. Pippa's face changes- a mischievous sparkle.**_

**PIPPA  
****Jamie Bennett! No fair!**

Sarah, George, and Poppy all fight smiles as the Pippa on screen had to push her hat back up out of her eyes. She never took that thing off.

**JAMIE  
****(laughs)  
****You struck first!**

**CLAUDE**  
**Oh!**

_**Suddenly we see Caleb struck in the side of the head with one of Jack's snowballs; Claude can't help but laugh.**_

**JACK**  
**Free for all!**

_**And just like that we find ourselves in a take-no-prisoners snowball fight,  
**__**the kids pummeling each other mercilessly.**_

**JACK  
****Alright, who needs ammo?**

_**Jack supplies the kids with more snowballs. The kids are loving this.**_

**JACK  
****(walla)  
****Look at that.**

_**The mayhem continues as Jamie, using his sled as a shield, is knocked  
**__**backwards into a snowman, crushing it underneath him.  
**__**A snowball flies overhead and hits CUPCAKE, a tough third grader as wide  
**__**as she is tall, in the back of the head.  
**__**Dread sets in among the other kids, Cupcake squints- gunslinger eyes.**_

Alex can't help but laugh.

"She's not as scary as she seems. She absolutely adores Jake." he said.

_**CUPCAKE  
**__**Grrrrrrrrrrrr...**_

**PIPPA  
****Crud, I hit Cupcake.**

**MONTY  
****She hit Cupcake.**

**CLAUDE  
****You hit Cupcake?**

_**Jamie is flat on his back, terrified. He looks up to see Cupcake  
**__**standing over him. Then, BOOF! jack hits Cupcake with a magical snowball.  
**__**The kids gasp in horror.**_

**CLAUDE  
****Oh!**

**CALEB  
****Did you throw that?**

**MONTY  
****no.**

**PIPPA  
****Wasn't me.**

_**A moment, and then Cupcake starts laughing as Jack's magic takes hold.  
**__**Cupcake chases the kids down the hill, holding the head of her snowman in  
**__**her hands. Jack, all the while, runs along side taking pleasure in the excitement.**_

"That's Jack. If you didn't have a friend he'd make one for you." Emily said, smiling.

**JAMIE  
****(walla)  
****Hey, come on. Stop!**

**CLAUDE  
****(walla)  
****You can't catch me.**

**JACK  
****Ooh, little slippery!**

_**Jack jumps ahead, blasting a sheet of ice behind him. The kids fall to the  
**__**ground, except for Jamie, who lands on his sled, and slides head first down the sheet of ice into town.**_

**JAMIE  
****Whooaaooah!**

**JAMIE  
****(walla)  
****Aha, whoa!**

**KIDS  
****(walla)  
****Jamie! Turn, turn! that's the street! What are you doing? Stop! There's traffic!**

Renee gasped and covered her eyes.

"Jack would never endanger him. He'll be safe." Lucy assured the other woman.

"I still can't look." Renee said.

**Jamie suddenly shoots between the trees and careens past a set of parked cars.  
****Jack's path of ice covers the street. As Jamie turns, his speed only escalates, sending  
****him directly into traffic. Jamie barely misses a moving trick, spinning it out of control and causing a four car pile up.**

**JAMIE  
****Whoa!**

**JACK  
****Whoa, don't worry kid, I gotcha.**

_**Jamie looks back, then quickly ahead again as terror comes into his eyes. Jack can't help but smile.**_

**JACK  
****Hold on. It's gonna be alright.**

**JAMIE  
****Ahhh! No, no, no, no...**

**JACK  
****Keep up with me kid! Take a left.**

"I'm sorry, but your son is the most reckless person I've seen in a long time." Lucas said, holding his breath.

"He gave me more grey hairs than age." Lucy said.

"Aye." her brother agreed.

_**Jamie rockets through a pedestrian intersection, narrowly missing those in the crosswalk.**_

**DOG WALKER(O.S.)  
****Hey, slow down!**

**JAMIE  
****Whoa, no, no, no, no...**

_**Jack flies over to the far side of the street, sending the streak of ice and Jamie up onto the sidewalk.**_

**JACK  
****Yeah!**

**PEDESTRIAN #1 (O.S)  
****Is that Jamie Bennett?**

**JAMIE  
****Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa**

**PEDESTRIAN #2 (O.S)  
****Hey! Watch it!**

**JACK  
****There you go!**

**JAMIE  
****No! No!**

**PEDESTRIAN #3 (O.S.)  
****Look at that dude!**

_**Jamie flies off the sidewalk and back into the middle of the street, almost knocking  
**__**over a postman. As Jack flies by Jamie's side he sees the look of excitement come into  
**__**Jamie's face. Jack smiles, knowing he's responsible.  
**__**Jack sees an oncoming snowplow and quickly jumps ahead, carried by the wind, to divert the ice trail.**_

**JACK  
****Whoa**

_**Jamie's sled suddenly turns, narrowly missing the oncoming truck and  
**__**barrels towards Jack's newly formed ice ramp...**_

**JAMIE  
****AAAAHHHHHHHHHH!**

_**Jamie closes his eyes as the ramp launches Jamie over the street, high into  
**__**the air, and toward the statue of Thaddeus Burgess, colonial settler- 1680.**_

"That's us. Thaddeus and I and our children. Their ages are off though. Jack looks about twelve or thirteen, and Emma about nine." Lucy realized.

"It's three hundred years later, it can't be totally accurate." Emma laughed.

**Jamie's**_** friends stand in awe, mouths wide open, as he sails through the air.  
**__**Jamie opens his eyes and the look of fear suddenly turns to joy. Jack looks on smiling.  
**__**Jamie lands safely in a large mount of snow. jack jumps onto the statue of Thaddeus Burgess.**_

**PIPPA (O.S.)  
****Oh my gosh!**

**JACK  
****Yeah!**

_**Jamie's friend all come running to Jamie's aide, scared. But Jamie gets up.**_

**KIDS  
****Wow, that looks serious! Jamie! Jamie, are you alright? Is he okay?**

**JAMIE  
****Whoaaa! Did you guys see that? It was amazing! I slid- I  
****did a jump and i slid under a car- ERF!**

_**A sofa from the moving van suddenly knocks Jamie down...**_

The whole room cringed in unison

**JACK  
****Whoops.**

**KIDS  
****(Cringing)  
****Ooooh!**

_**There's a moment of silence as the ids wait to see if Jamie is  
**__**okay. Then Jamie rises up from behind the sofa, grinning, a new  
**__**gap in his smile. He holds up a tooth..**_

**JAMIE  
****Cool! A Tooth!**

"Renee, you can look now." Lucas said. She opened her eyes.

**KIDS  
****(walla)  
****Dude, that means cash! Tooth Fairy cash! I love the Tooth Fairy!**

**JACK  
****(his fun cut short)  
****Oh no...**

"Poor Jack..." Heather whispered, her heart breaking at the look on his face.

**KIDS  
****(walla)  
****That's totally awesome. You lucky bug! Lucky!**

**JACK  
****No!**

"Oh son..." Lucy breathed.

**JAMIE  
****I gotta put this under my pillow!**

**KIDS  
****(walla)  
****I wish I lost my tooth.**

**JACK  
****Ah, wait a minute! Come on, hold on, hold on! What about all that  
****fun we just had! That wasn't the Tooth Fairy, that was me!**

"He's still alone. Three hundred years and no one has seen him?" James Bennett demanded. Emma nodded.

"I should have done something..." she whispered.

"Why didn't you?" Monica asked.

"I was scared to face him. The last time we'd seen each other he _died,_ and I knew I'd had to have walked through him multiple times... I couldn't do it." Emma whispered.

"He could never be angry with you, Emma. You had him wrapped around your little finger." James Overland told his niece. She shrugged.

"I know that now, but I didn't then."

**KIDS  
****I lost two teeth in one day once- remember that?!  
****What are you gonna spend your money on?  
****What are you gonna buy? How much do you think she's going to leave?**

_**As Jack looks down from the statue his frustration grows. Storm clouds overhead  
**__**rumble and darken. Flurries of snow begin to intensify.**_

**KIDS  
****(walla)  
****Ah, it's hot cocoa time.**

_**Jack jumps down from the statue, trying to engage the kids.  
**__**But it's too late, the kids take off. Jack blocks Jamie's way as the boy comes running at him.**_

**JACK  
****What's a guy gotta do to get a little attention around here!**

_**WHOOOSH! Jamie runs right through Jack, as if he were a ghost.**_

"How is he still sane?" George asked.

"I still don't know, honestly. I at least had Father Time." Emma replied.

_**Jack is left momentarily shaken, then...**_

**CUPCAKE  
****(mocking her friends)  
****"Oh, I'm cold, I'm cold, I'm coold!"**

**KIDS (O.S)  
****Somebody take a picture. Hey, stop! That was really awesome.**

_**They're gone. Jack was along again. His temper subsides.  
**__**He whips up a little wind and disappears at it begins to snow.**_

Lucy's heart shattered.

"He looked so lost." she whispered. Emma hugged her mother.

"He's not anymore." she said.


	6. Chapter 6

**I am so sorry it took longer than I planned to update! We're moving, so... craziness in my household! Still, here you go!**

* * *

**_INT. JAMIE'S BEDROOM- NIGHT_**

**_Jamie plays with a TOY ROBOT as DRAWINGS AND CHARTS of mystery creatures hang on the wall behind him: UFO's, aliens, Bigfoot, you name it. There's even a drawing of Jamie flying in midair on his sled._**.

**JAMIE (O.S)  
|.. I did this jump and it was amazing and I slid under a car and it was awesome! Then I was flying down this hill and I was like whoosh, whoosh, whoosh through all these cars, and then the sled hit this, this thing, and I was like way up in the air.**

The parents all smile at Jamie, at how excited he was telling his adventure of the day.

**_He mimes flying in the air with his robot, then CRASHING to the bed as Sophie and their dog sit listening-_**

**JAMIE  
-and then BAM! The sofa hit me, and, and see? (opens mouth, tries to say 'my tooth came out') Ah hoo hay ow!**

**_We reveal JAMIE'S MOM in the room. Sophie LAUGHS and tries to stick a finger in the gap in his gums._**

**JAMIE'S MOM  
Alright you, tooth under your pillow?**

**_Jamie sets the TOY ROBOT on his nightstand, and then grabs a stuffed rabbit next to his pillow to reveal a CAMERA AND FLASHLIGHT._**

**JAMIE  
Yeah. I'm ready.**

"Children always try to stay up and see Tooth." Emma chuckled.

"You and Jack did the same." Lucy laughed. Emma smiled, bittersweet. She'd stopped believing, after Jack died.

**JAMIE'S MOM  
Now, don't stay up trying to see her, Jamie, or she won't come.**

**JAMIE  
But I can do it this time! You wanna help me, Soph? We can hide and see the Tooth Fairy!**

**SOPHIE  
(crazed)  
hide, hide, hide, hide!**

"She is so excitable, she's a mess." Renee laughed.

"But we love our children for it." Samantha agreed, laughing.

**_Jamie's Mom picks Sophie up off the bed and lifts her over her shoulder. Their dog gets up and begins licking Jamie's face._**

**JAMIE'S MOM  
uh uh, straight to bed now, mister.**

**JAMIE  
Mom...**

**_We see Jack Frost, outside, hanging upside down watching them through a window. A pang. The glass frosts over._**

The smiles in the room fade as everyone sees Jack's forlorn expression.

"I should have been there." Emma whispered.

"You couldn't have known." Monica tried to reassure the time spirit.

"But I should have. I let my fear keep me away from my own family." she replied.

_Never again._ a small voice in her head whispered.

**_EXT. ROOF OF JAMIE'S HOUSE- CONTINUOUS_**

**_Jack flips onto the roof, a little pensive. He makes his way toward the roof's peak and looks up at the MOON, in full view. It lights up the night sky._**

**JACK  
If there's something I'm doing wrong, can you, can you just tell me what it is?  
(No response)  
Because I've tried everything and no one ever sees me.  
(No response)  
You put me here. The least you can do is tell me, tell me why.**

Lucy felt tears start sliding down her cheeks. Renee looked over at the other woman and her face fell into one of sympathy. The worst thing for a mother to go through was watching her child hurt and not be able to do anything about it.

**_A beat. The Moon shines silently down. _**

**_Jack turns away in frustration.  
Jack leaps off the roof, onto a telephone pole, and begins walking across some telephone wires.  
A stream of Dreamsand suddenly zips behind him, then another, which swoops around in front of him. Jack turns and looks up, a smile now on his lips._**

"It's beautiful." Emily whispered.

**JACK  
Right on time, Sandman.**

**_The Dreamsand descends from the sky, and drifts into windows around the town. Jack runs along the telephone wire until he can reach out and intercept one of the passing streams. An adjacent stream takes the shape of a dolphin which turns toward Jack before turning to sand and continuing on its way to a waiting child. Then, we follow one of the streams into a window._**

**_INT. CUPCAKE'S BEDROOM- BURGESS- CONTINUOUS_**

**_Dreamsand floats into a window, where CUPCAKE is in bed, hugging a stuffed unicorn in her sleep. _**

Alex smiles fondly at his daughter. She was a sweet girl, when you managed to get past her tough exterior.

**_The Dreamsand swirls over her head, and morphs into a little girl riding a unicorn. The girl smiles at the lovely dream as it flies around the room.  
Then the room darkens as a wispy, shadowy figure with a familiar laugh crawls out from under the bed, and rises up.  
It's Pitch_**

Alex scowled.

"He'd better not touch my daughter." he growled angrily.

**_He notices Cupcake's dream._**

**PITCH  
ohhhh, I thought I heard the clippity-clop of a unicorn.  
What an adorable dream!**

**His face softened, seemingly moved.**

**PITCH  
(leans down to Cupcake)  
And look. At. Her. Precious child. So sweet, so full of hope and, there's only one thing missing... A touch of fear.**

**_Pitch reaches into Cupcake's dream and touches a bony finger to the unicorn. It shudders, turns ashen and black, and disintegrates. Cupcake flinches in her sleep. Pitch snickers, delighted._**

"Calm down, Cupcake's fine. It was only a bad dream. It was gone-" Emma assured.

"-when she woke up. That's what Jack always told you." James Overland said. Emma smiled.

**PITCH  
hahaha! That never gets old!**

**_Pitch swirls the dreamsand around and it all turns into black corrupted nightmare sand._**

**PITCH  
feel your fear. Come on. Come on, that's right.**

**_The black sand morphs into a horrific, shadowy bucking horse- a NIGHTMARE._**

**PITCH  
yesss. What a pretty little nightmare you are.**

"Nightmare. I get it. A female horse is called a mare." Poppy said. A few people cracked smiles or laughed at the pun.

**_Gleefully, he grabs the Nightmare's mane-_**

**PITCH  
now, I want you to go tell the others the wait is over.**

**_and sends it out the window, where it joins a posse of other Nightmares coursing through the streets. they take off and fly into the night sky._**

**_EXT. BURGESS- NIGHT_**

**_Pitch steps out into the street from an adjacent alley, avoiding the rays of moonlight. He looks up to the sky and stares at the Moon._**

**PITCH  
Don't look at me like that, old friend. You must have known this day would come. My Nightmares are finally ready. Are your Guardians?**

"Yes!" Thomas exclaimed.

"They were. Jack and I didn't become Guardians until a few days after this. Jack still helped, and I made sure to keep a close eye on it all." Emma explained.

**_EXT. BURGESS- NIGHT_**

**_Jack walks along a telephone wire as the dreamsand disappears from the sky. Suddenly a shadowy figure and an unfamiliar noise zips by behind him._**

**JACK  
Whoa!**

"What was that?" Lucas asked.

"It looked like a very large rabbit." James Overland said.

**_In the background_****_, residents get ready for the night._**

**RESIDENTS (O.S.)  
(walla)  
Did you leave the windows open again? The garage door is wide open.**

**_Jack leaps over a house to an adjacent tree to investigate and again, something zooms behind him. Jack jumps down from the tree and onto a truck in a nearby alley._**

**_EXT. STREETS OF BURGESS- NIGHT- CONTINUOUS_**

**_Suddenly: WHOOSH! The SHADOW flashes by, knocking over a trash can.  
_****_Jack jumps down from the truck and backs up out of the alleyway into a clearing..._**

**BUNNYMUND (O.S.)  
Hello, mate.**

Cue groans from the Colonial residents of Burgess. They were starting to _greatly _dislike this rabbit.

**_Jack turns around, ready to strike. He squints as into the light steps..._**

**BUNNYMUND**

**Been a long time. Blizzard of 68, I believe. Easter Sunday, wasn't it?**

**_Jack is completely bewildered-_**

**JACK  
Bunny! You're still not mad about that are yah?**

**BUNNYMUND  
Yes.**

"He accidentally caused a blizzard about fifty years ago." Emma explained.

**_Bunny whips out his boomerang and casually looks at it as he holds it in his hands._**

**BUNNYMUND(CONT'D)  
But this is about something else.  
(beat)  
Fellas...**

**_Before Jack realizes what's happening a HUGE HAND reaches into frame and lifts him off his feet._**

"HEY!" A number of people from the colony exclaimed.

"They'd better not hurt him!" James Bennett exclaimed in the defense of his best friend.

**JACK  
Hey!**

**YETI  
Durbha wahla**

**_Jack has been snatched up by two huge YETIS_**

**JACK  
Put me down! What the...**

**_Jack is shoved head first into a sack. A yeti whips out a snow globe, and smashes it onto the ground._**

**YETI  
Durtal bardla burdlew**

**_A MAGIC PORTAL opens up in front of them. The yetis make way for Bunny to leap in, but he demurs-_**

**YETI  
Dwbard urghwetee.**

**BUNNYMUND  
Me?  
(laughs)  
Not on your nelly. See you back at the pole.**

**He STAMPS HIS FOOT twice on the ground which SWIRLS OPEN- a RABBIT HOLE magically appears. _Bunny leaps into it and disappears along with the rabbit hole. In its place, from out of the ground grows a small green plant._**

**YETIS  
Bwardla arghl**

**_The yetis throw Jack through the magic portal_**

"If they had to kidnap him they could have at least been more gentle and not scare him half to death!" Lucy exclaimed angrily.

**JACK  
Ahhhhhhhhhhhh!**

**_The yetis then charge after and disappear into it._**


	7. Chapter 7

**Okay, I'm sorry it took so long but I've just been a little put off of writing lately, that and the fact we've been moving. **

**I'm going to rant for a minute, because I need to clarify something. _I did not create this screenplay._ LaurenJr did, and she gave me permission to use it as I loved her story a lot and it inspired me to make the first in this thing about screenplays is that a lot of times they do have grammatical errors, and I don't catch them over half the time and that's okay because it's a screenplay and it's not meant to be perfect so I don't stress out over it. If a screenplay had perfect grammer it would be a book, not a screenplay. **

**Anyways, with that out of the way I hope you enjoy this chapter! Also, the one-shot series for this story, Change, is up and running so be sure to go and read that and give me prompts for it! I'm about to post the first part of the first story arc in it, so I really hope you'll all like it.**

**Thank you and enjoy!**

* * *

**TOOTH (O.S.)**  
**(to a fairy)**  
**Tangiers! Incivie du haut, 421 rue **  
**de Barat! Allez!**

**_The sack flies out of the portal and lands on the floor. In _**  
**_the darkness, Jack hears -_**

**NORTH (O.S.)**  
**He's here.**

**_Jack struggles out of the sack to see two elves staring at _**  
**_him._**

"At least he wasn't hurt." Lucy said, smiling.

"Mama, it takes a lot to hurt a spirit, trust me. I fell out of a really tall tree once, when I was still learning to fly. It hurt, but it was like that time I tripped and fell down the hill. I was just sore." Emma replied.

**TOOTH**  
**(to another fairy)**  
**Walla Walla, Washington.**  
**We've got a trampoline mishap**  
**at 1340 Ginger Lane.**

**NORTH**  
**Quiet.**

**_He then looks up to see North and Sandman looking down at _**  
**_him. The Tooth Fairy is surrounded by a dozen hovering tiny _**  
**_fairies who come and go as she blurts out orders._**

**T0OTH (CONT'D)**  
**Canine, lateral and central **  
**incisor. Ouch!**

**_North clears his throat. They all turn to a bewildered Jack._**

**NORTH**  
**Hey, there he is! Jack Frost!**

**_As North holds out his arms to welcome Jack, a Dreamsand _**  
**_snowflake appears above Sandy's head._**

**JACK**  
**Wow, you gotta be kidding me.**

"I get the feeling he's not too glad to see them." George said.

**_Two Yetis suddenly grab Jack by the shoulders and lift him up _**  
**_onto his feet._**

**JACK**  
**Hey, hey. Whoa, put me down.**

**NORTH**  
**I hope the yetis treated you well?**

**JACK**  
**Oh, yeah. I love being shoved in a**  
**sack and tossed through a magic **  
**portal.**

The Colonial people, used to Jack's sarcasm, laughed.

"He hasn't changed!" James Bennett laughed.

**NORTH**  
**Oh, good! That was my idea! ****You know Bunny, obviously.**

Everyone but Emma stared incredulously at the screen.

"Did he seriously just say that?" Poppy asked.

**JACK**  
**Obviously.**

**_Bunny stands off to the side, grumbling with his arms _**  
**_crossed._**  
**_Jack suddenly notices the MINI TOOTH FAIRIES _**  
**_hovering near him, staring and twittering._**

**NORTH**  
**And the Tooth Fairy?**

**_Before Jack can answer, she's gliding toward him._**

**TOOTH**  
**Hello, Jack. I've heard a lot **  
**about you.**  
**And your teeth.**

"His what?" Renee gasped, fighting back a laugh.

"Why am I not shocked the Tooth Fairy is obsessed with teeth?" Lucas asked, chuckling lightly.

**JACK**  
**My, my what?**

**TOOTH**  
**(moves in way too close)**  
**Open up! Are they really as white **  
**as they say? Yes!**  
**(gasp)**  
**Oh, they really do sparkle like **  
**freshly fallen snow.**

At this point everyone starts laughing, even Emma.

**_Several swooning Mini Teeth flutter around a confused Jack, _**  
**_batting their lashes and screaming like crazed Beatles fans. _**  
**_Tooth collects herself, and..._**

**TOOTH**  
**Girls, pull yourselves together... **  
**Let's not disgrace the uniform.**

"I don't see a uniform." Alex exclaimed, bouncing Jake on his knee.

**NORTH**  
**And Sandman.**  
**(sees Sandy is snoozing)  
****Sandy! Sandy! Wake up!**

**_Sandy bolts up awake and steps up to Jack, smiling._**

**JACK**  
**Hey! Ho! Anyone wanna tell me why **  
**I'm here?**

**_The WISP OF DREAMSAND above Sandy's head morphs into a _**  
**_BARRAGE OF IMAGES._**

**JACK**  
**That's not really helping. But **  
**thanks, little man.**

"Understanding Sandy takes many years of practice." Emma laughed at the bewildered looks of the others in the room.

**(to others)**  
**I musta done something really bad **  
**to get you four together.**

**_Jack walks away from the group, frosting an elf with a tray _**  
**_of cookies as it marches past, then turns around._**

**JACK**  
**Am I on the naughty list?**

"Jack was always on the naughty list!" Heather laughed.

**NORTH**  
**(chuckles)**  
**On naughty list? You hold record!  
****But no matter. We overlook. Now **  
**we are wiping clean the slate.**

**JACK**  
**How come?**

**BUNNYMUND**  
**(more to North)**  
**Ah, good question.**

**NORTH**  
**How come? I tell you how come!**  
**Because now...you are Guardian!**

**_In Jack's confusion, yetis light CEREMONIAL TORCHES with a _**  
**_WHOOSH. _****_Elves leap from columns, unfurling homemade,  
_****_celebratory BANNERS as they descend. Jack brushes off a few  
_****_baby teeth who try to present him with a necklace made of  
_****_paper snowflakes._**

"Uhh... WHat are they doing?" Monica asked. Emma shrugged.

**JACK**  
**What are you doing! Get, get that **  
**offa me!**

**_Jack's voice is drowned out by the sounds of horns and drums._**

**NORTH**  
**This is the best part!**

**_AN ELF MARCHING BAND strikes up, marching into the room.  
_****_Two yetis move Jack on to a designated spot on the floor.  
_****_Jack looks down to find an elf pointing at his bare feet.  
_****_The elf then directs his attention to two approaching elves,  
_****_carrying a pair of ceremonial boots._**

"Good luck with that. Jack never ever wore shoes." James Overland laughed, rolling his eyes.

**_Jack's confusion escalates._**

**JACK**  
**Huh?**

**_A Yeti hands North an old large book. North blows off the _**  
**_dust, opens it, and begins clearing his throat. Jack _**  
**_clenches his jaw as he scans the room: The Mini Teeth _**  
**_continue to fawn, Sandy's smiling, Bunny's apathetic, and _**  
**_North looks on with pride.  
_**"Uh oh. They might want to clear the room." James Bennett said, amusement in his voice.

"Why?" Sarah asked.

"Jack is getting angry." Thomas piped up.

"Aye, and when Jack is angry no one wants to get in his way." James Bennett agreed with his little brother.** _Jack__ suddenly SLAMS his staff down, sending a blast of FROST  
_****_and WIND across the room. The torches go out and everything  
_****_stops._**

"The ice powers suit him." James Overland commented to himself.

**JACK**  
**What makes you think I want to be a **  
**Guardian?**

**_North bursts out in laughter holding the book in his hands_**  
**_then stops and looks to Jack, stone faced._**

**NORTH**  
**Of course you do!**  
**(to the elves)**  
**Music!**

**_The elves blare the trumpets again. Celebration!_**

**JACK **  
**No music!**

**_The music peters out again. An elf throws his trumpet to the _**  
**_ground and storms off. _****_North, displeased, glowers._**

**JACK**  
**Look, this is all very flattering, **  
**but ah...you don't want me.  
****You're all hard work and deadlines,  
****and I'm snowballs and fun times.  
****I'm not a Guardian.**

"Yes you are!"

"You always were!" the Colonial children all yell at the screen.

"Calm down, kids. Jack just... He didn't believe it at first. He will." she assured.

"You know he's a Guardian better than anyone, Emma, he was _your_ Guardian." Anne said softly from her sister's lap.

"He is a Guardian, Anne, he always was and always will be. It just took a long time for him to see that." Emma replied.

**BUNNYMUND**  
**Yeah, that's exactly what I said!**

**TOOTH**  
**Jack...I don't think you understand **  
**what it is we do.**

**_Tooth swoops in and turns Jack's attention to the massive _**  
**_globe behind him._**

**TOOTH**  
**Each of those lights is a child.**

**_Jack looks up at the Globe, taking it in. _**  
**_North suddenly moves to Jack's side._**

**NORTH**  
**A child who believes.****And good or  
****bad, naughty or nice, we protect ****them.  
****(beat)  
****Tooth...fingers out of mouth.**

Cue giggles from most of the girls in the room.

**_We cut back to discover that Tooth is examining Jack's teeth._**

**TOOTH**  
**(removes fingers)**  
**Oh, sorry. They're beautiful.**

**_Jack moves away from the Globe and back toward the center of _**  
**_the room._**

**NORTH**  
**Okay, no more wishy-washy! Pitch **  
**is out there doing who knows what!**

**JACK**  
**(scoffs)**  
**You mean the Boogeyman?**

**NORTH**  
**Yes! When Pitch threatens us, he **  
**threatens them as well.**

**_North points to the lights on the globe._**

**JACK**  
**All the more reason to pick someone **  
**more qualified!**

"From what I've heard from the people of the Burgess Settlement, there aren't many that are more qualified." Renee commented.

"Damn right!" James Bennett exclaimed.

"James! Watch your tongue, lad, you may be grown but I am still your mother." Heather scolded.

"Yes, Mama." he said. Thomas giggled from his seat.

**NORTH**  
**Pick? You think we pick? No, you **  
**were chosen like we were all**  
**chosen. By Man in Moon.**

**_Jack turns and looks to the group._**

**JACK**  
**(stares, dumbstruck)**  
**What?**

Any humor left in the room from the interaction between James and his mother seemed to vanish.

**TOOTH**  
**Last night, Jack. He chose you.**

**BUNNYMUND**  
**Maybe.**

**JACK**  
**The Man in the Moon, he talks to **  
**you?**

"Why wouldn't he talk to Jack?" Monica asked.

"I don't know. He wouldn't even talk to me until he told me it was Jack who needed to face Pitch. It was pure luck I found my memories so soon." Emma whispered.

**_Jack looks up to the skylight, taking in the awesome sight of _**  
**_the moon as it shines down on Earth._**

**NORTH**  
**You see, you can not say no. It is **  
**destiny.**

**_Jack is still confused by the news. What does it mean?_**

**JACK**  
**But why, why wouldn't he tell me **  
**that himself?  
****(exasperated exhale)**  
**After 300 years this is his answer? **  
**To spend eternity like you guys **  
**cooped up in some, some hideout **  
**thinking of, of new ways to bribe **  
**kids? No no, that's not for me.**  
**No offense.**

**_Jack turns to leave, the Guardians are stunned._**

**BUNNYMUND**  
**How is that not offensive?**

"I hate to say it, but I agree with the overgrown hare. That would be offensive." James Overland conceded.

**_Except for Bunny, who is relieved by this turn and looks to _**  
**_the others._**

**BUNNYMUND**  
**You know what I think? I think we **  
**just dodged a bullet.I mean, **  
**what's this clown know about **  
**bringing joy to children anyway?**

"Everything!" a small girl squealed, hopping up and down in her seat.

"Jack knows all sorts of games!"

"And remember when we got lost in the woods egg hunting? Jack made it a game and lead us home!"

"I was too young to remember that, but I remember when he used to climb every tree he could to find eggs for us."

"And all the snowball fights!"

"He always knew how to make everything better." Emma agreed with the excited shouts of the children. She wished the guardians could have seen this before. Before they knew who Jack was. Before they knew just how much he loved the children and how much they needed him to chase the fear of winter away, to make it all snowballs and fun times. They'd have had a very different view on her brother then.

**_Jack turns back. A little pissed._**

**JACK**  
**Uhh, you ever hear of a snow day?**  
**I know it's no hard-boiled egg, but **  
**kids like what I do.**

"They always have and always will. I remember going out and playing in the snow myself when I was younger." Lucas smiled.

**BUNNYMUND**  
**But none of 'em believe in you.**  
**(leans in to him)**  
**Do they? You see, you're **  
**invisible, mate. It's like you **  
**don't even exist.**

Furious silence filled the room and the tension could be cut with a knife. Lucy looked near tears she was so angry.

"Mama, please try and calm down-" Emma began.

"Calm down? Did you not just hear what he said! What else has my son gone through? How much pain?" she demanded tearfully.

"I know, Mama. I know." Emma hugged her mother and Lucy broke down, sobbing.

"What did he do to deserve this?" she cried.

She wasn't the only one in tears. Many women were crying, and even a lot of the men had misty eyes. The children, not quite understanding the gravity of what had been said but still knowing just how cruel a comment it was were plotting a jack-style prank on the Easter Bunny for when he arrived. because they knew he would.

Renee looked on with the other parents from the modern times.

"I can't imagine what she's going through." Sarah finally whispered.

"I don't want to." Samantha replied.

**TOOTH**  
**Bunny! Enough!**

**_Silence. Jack tries not to look stung by this._**

**JACK**  
**No, the kangaroo's right.**

**BUNNYMUND**  
**(glares)**  
**The, the what - what'd you call **  
**me? I am not a kangaroo, mate.**

**JACK**  
**Oh. And this whole time I thought **  
**you were. If you're not a **  
**kangaroo, what are you?**

**BUNNYMUND**  
**I'm a bunny. The Easter Bunny.**  
**People believe in me.**

"We believe in him!" the children exclaimed angrily as if the rabbit on screen could hear them.

**_Sandy nudges North, who acknowledges the tension in the air._**

**NORTH**  
**(to Jack)**  
**Jack. Walk with me.**

The silence was still thick, Lucy finally calming down. There was fire in her eyes, and most everyone's thoughts went to the old phrase "Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned."

Emma supposed it also translated into "Hell hath no fury like an angry mother."


	8. Chapter 8

**Hi everyone! Okay, there really is no excuse for what took me so long to update this. Honestly it was a mixture of writer's block, procrastination, schoolwork, illness, and makeup work. As well as a recent minor obsession with Vampire Knight. And trying to get together a costume for my local anime convention WHICH IS ONLY A WEEK AWAY WHOO!**

**Thank you all for being so patient, and for the guest who asked me if this story is dead, no it is not. I've just had a lot on my plate recently and my stories got shoved to the back of the bus, though I did manage to update Watching The Big Four: Seasons while I was sick. **

**Anywhoodles, ENJOY! (Don't forget to review! Reviews are love and make my day amazing!)**

* * *

_**Jack and North ride an elevator, bearing the resemblance of a **_  
_**Christmas ornament, down to the factory floor.**_

**JACK**  
**It's nothing personal, North. What you all do, it's just, it's not my thing.**

"It is so your thing." Emma chuckled.

**NORTH**  
**Man in Moon says it is your thing.**  
**We will see!**

_**North storms through factory floor, Jack trying to keep up. **_  
_**It's an amazing place.**_

**JACK**  
**Slow down, wouldja? I've been **  
**trying to bust in here for years, I want a good look.**

"Yeah!" the kids all exclaimed in unison. They'd hardly even paid attention to the dialogue, too busy focusing on absorbing every detail of the workshop that they possibly could.

**NORTH**  
**(peeved - still rushing)**  
**What do you mean, "bust in?"**

**JACK**  
**Oh, don't worry, I never got past the yetis.**

_**Jack looks over his shoulder; an angry yeti pounds his fist **_  
_**into his palm.**_

**YETI**  
**Rwwarrrrrr.**

**JACK**  
**Oh, hey Phil.**

**NORTH**  
**Keep up, Jack! Keep up!**

_**North charges ahead. **_  
_**North's factory is bustling with activity: Yeti's are **_  
_**building toys, moving packages, while Elves are test piloting **_  
_**the various flying toys.**_  
_**As Jack walks behind North, surveying the factory, a duck toy suddenly flies over Jack's head. Jack ducks just in time and continues after North.**_

"This is so cool." Ryan breathed, a childish glimmer entering his eyes. Samantha rolled her eyes at her husband with a smile, though she had to agree.

**JACK **  
**Whoa!**  
**(beat)**  
**I always thought the elves made the toys.**

"That's asking for disaster." Emma shuddered at the idea. The cleanup if that ever happened... There would be a convenient time anomaly somewhere about 600 years in the past if that ever happened.

**NORTH**  
**(whispers)**  
**We just let them believe that.**

_**Jack looks over to see a group of elves eating Christmas **_  
_**ornaments and another electrocuting himself with Christmas lights.**_

"That just looks painful." George winced.

"What is it..?" James Bennett asked.

"It's called electricity. It's like lightning, but not quite as powerful." Emma explained. At least, she hoped it was a good enough explanation. Those from Colonial Burgess all winced. Ouch.

_**North smiles and calls to them.**_

**NORTH**  
**Very nice! Keep up good work!**

_**North continues through the factory floor. He passes a yeti**_  
_**putting the finishing touches on a blue toy robot.**_

**NORTH**  
**(to yeti)**  
**I don't like it. Paint it red.**

_**The yeti reacts in dismay as we reveal hundreds of finished **_  
_**blue robots.**_

"Poor thing." Lucy whispered.

**NORTH**  
**Step it up, everybody.**

_**As North and Jack move to the opposite end of the chamber, we **_  
_**finally glimpse the orchestrated chaos of the entire **_  
_**workshop, in all it's magic and splendor.**_

**INT. NORTH'S OFFICE - A MOMENT LATER**

_**Jack follows North into his office. There are shelves filled **_  
_**with toys. Sketches and prototypes everywhere. **_  
_**North dusts his hands and turns to Jack. His sleeves are **_  
_**rolled. Jack notices that on one of North's forearms is **_  
_**tattooed the word NAUGHTY, and on the other, NICE. North **_  
_**grabs a plate from a nearby elf.**_

**NORTH**  
**Fruit cake?**

**JACK**  
**Ah, no, thanks.**

_**North hurls it - crash!  
**__**A pause as North looks at Jack.**_

**NORTH **  
**Now we get down to tacks of brass!**

"What?" came the confused, unison response of most of the room. This caused most of them to fall into fits of giggles.

**JACK**  
**(to himself)**  
**Tacks of brass?**

_**As North cracks his knuckles, Jack stands silent. The wind **_  
_**suddenly slams North's office door behind them. Jack looks **_  
_**to the door, it locks itself, and he turns back. North moves **_  
_**in close to Jack, backing him up against the door.**_

James Bennett tensed in concern for his friend.

**NORTH**  
**Who are you, Jack Frost?  
****What is your center?**

"What makes him Jack." Emma explained. The kids all look down, trying to figure it out.

_**North pokes Jack in the chest.**_

**JACK**  
**My center?**

**NORTH**  
**If Man in Moon chose you to be a Guardian, you must have something very special inside.**

"Aye, that he does have. He always did have his mother's spark." James Overland chuckled.

_**North stands up straight and begins to stroke his beard as he **_  
_**gives Jack a curious look.**_

**NORTH**  
**Hmmmm?**

_**North is standing in front of a shelf of Russian nesting dolls. One is carved to look like North himself.**_

**NORTH (CONT'D)**  
**Here. This is how you see me, no? Very big, intimidating.**  
**But if you get to know me a little-**  
**(hands the doll to Jack)**  
**Well, go on.**

**_Jack gives North a curious look, then sets down his staff_.  
**_**He twists the doll in half, and inside is another carved  
**__**North doll, this one is a more typical Santa Claus - red  
**__**cheeked and cheery.**_

**JACK**  
**You are downright jolly.**

**NORTH**  
**Ah, but not just jolly...**

_**The dolls get progressively smaller as he twists them open, **_  
_**all versions of North, but all slightly different.**_

**NORTH (CONT'D)**  
**I am also mysterious.**  
**(twist - smaller doll)**  
**And fearless.**  
**(twist - smaller doll)**  
**And caring. And at my center...**

_**Twist. As North approaches, Jack looks down and drops the **_  
_**final Russian doll into the palm of North's hand. It's the **_  
_**size of a jelly bean.**_

"A tiny wooden baby?" James Bennett asked.

**JACK**  
**There's a tiny wooden baby?**

**NORTH**  
**Look closer. What do you see?**

"Big eyes?" Rose suggested tentatively.

_**Jack holds it up to examine it.**_

**JACK**  
**You have big eyes?**

**NORTH**  
**Yes! Big eyes. Very big.**  
**Because they are full Of wonder! That is my center. It is what I was born with. Eyes that have always seen the wonder in everything!**

_**North raises his hands, and the toys on the shelves suddenly **_  
_**spring to life. Jack-in-the-boxes pop, toy trains speed around the room, soldiers march about, toy planes fly overhead. An elf gets carried aloft by a balloon.**_  
_**A flying toy plane glides by and we follow it as it makes its **_  
_**way around the room. A Christmas tree is ablaze with bright lights. Two double doors suddenly open as the flying car **_  
_**enters the factory floor.**_

**NORTH **  
**Eyes that see lights in the trees,**  
**and magic in the air!**

_**As it crosses the frame, dozens of other toys are now flying **_  
_**around the massive chamber. It's a truly magical moment. **_

"That's amazing..." Emily breathed.

_**North now stands outside his office, with Jack at his side.**_

**NORTH **  
**This wonder is what I put into the world, and what I protect in children.**

**NORTH**  
**(MORE)It is what makes me a Guardian. It is my center. What is yours?**

**JACK**  
**(beat)**  
**I don't know.**

_**Jack looks down into his open palm, the wooden baby stares **_  
_**back at him. North closes Jack's hand. They exchange a look.**_  
_**Then, something suddenly jets past a window outside. Almost **_  
_**simultaneously, Bunny and Sandman come running down the hallway toward North and Jack.**_

**BUNNYMUND**  
**We have a problem, mate! Trouble at the Tooth Palace.**

"Oh no!"

"The Tooth Palace?"

"This isn't good." the kids all begin muttering to themselves and each other, worried for the Tooth Fairy.

"I hope the little fairies are okay?" Anne whispered.

* * *

**Just a note: I had to fininsh this chapter in a bit of a rush, so it is not my best work. I'll make up for it later, I promise! And I will update as soon as I possibly can! Besides, we're getting near where Jack joins the group, and is reunited with the people of Burgess. :) **

**REVIEW PLEASE THEY MAKE ME SO HAPPY! Seriously, whenever I get a review telling me about a part that someone liked or found funny, or just a bit of encouragement really makes my day and gets me motivated. I gotta go, I forgot to do the dishes so Mom is taking my computer. :( I'll get it back soon, I hope. **


	9. Chapter 9

**HI! I'm so sorry this took so long! I had a bit of a writers block again, but I'm back and up! Whoo!**

**I want to specifically thank Kaci12 for their wonderfully amazing review on the last chapter. It was the 100th review on this story and I nearly cried. Kaci has always been very supportive of my Stranger series, so thank you very much! Here are cookies! (::))(::)(::)(::)(::)(::)(::)(::)(::)**

* * *

**INT. LAUNCHING SHED - A MOMENT LATER**  
_**North shoves open a set of double doors, followed closely by**_  
_**Bunny, Sandy, and Jack. Several Yeti's rush by as they**_  
_**prepare the hangar for launch.**_

**NORTH (O.S.)**  
**(to Yetis)**  
**Boys, ship shape. As soon as**  
**impossible.**

The kids were all on the edge of their seats, anxious and excited.

**JACK**  
**North, North! I told you, I'm not**  
**going with you guys!**  
**There is no way I'm climbing into some rickety**  
**old...**

_**Suddenly: the SOUND of POUNDING HOOVES. BEASTLY SNORTING.**_  
_**SANTA'S INCREDIBLE SLEIGH comes into view. It's a huge,**_  
_**shiny, tricked out, jaw-dropping hot-rod of a sled.**_

"Whoa..." George breathed.

"I want one." Ryan added, his wife elbowing him with an exasperated smile.

**JACK**  
**...sleigh.**

_**Jack is understandably gob-smacked, so much so that he almost**_  
_**gets knocked over by one of the reindeer.**_

"Goodness, Jack. You never did pay attention." Lucy muttered with a small smile.

**JACK**  
**Whoa!**

**NORTH (cont'd)NORTH**  
**(to reindeer)**  
**Hey! Moi deti, moi deti. Quiet,**  
**quiet.**

_**The sleigh comes to a standstill as the Guardians prepare to**_  
_**climb inside. Several Yetis are still running around making**_  
_**last minute preparations.**_

**JACK**  
**Okay, one ride, but that's it.**

"I want to ride!" Anne jumped up and down, giggling.

"Maybe, but it's really cold up there. You don't want to get sick." her older sister cautioned.

_**Jack jumps aboard. North smiles knowingly, and climbs**_  
_**inside. Sandy hops up into the back seat.**_

**NORTH**  
**Everyone loves the sleigh.**

_**North grabs the reigns, wrapping them around his arms. He**_  
_**turns to see Bunnymund standing there, frozen and unnerved.**_

**NORTH (CONT'D)**  
**Bunny, what are you waiting for?**

**BUNNYMUND**  
**I think my tunnels might be faster,**  
**mate. And um, and safer.**

"I can't say I'd be too eager to get into that thing either." James Overland grimaced.

"It's a lot of fun." Emma grinned at her uncle. He wasn't fond of heights.

**NORTH**  
**Ah, get in.**  
**(hoists Bunnymund up)**  
**Buckle up!**

_**Bunny desperately looks around his seat.**_

**BUNNYMUND**  
**Whoa, whoa, whoa, where are the**  
**bloody seatbelts?!**

**NORTH**  
**(laughs)**  
**That was just expression!**

_**North turns to one of the Yetis .**_

**NORTH**  
**Are we ready?**

_**The Yeti throws his hands up in a fit shaking his head no.**_

**NORTH**  
**Good! Let's go! Clear!**  
**(cracks the reigns)**  
**Hyah!**

"Oh God." Lucy covered her eyes, unable to watch. James Bennett grinned as he watched his friend's excited face. What an adventure that looked like!

_**The sleigh is off. Elves and yetis scatter out of its path.**_  
_**Sandy, Bunny, and Jack fly back into their seats. Bunny**_  
_**clutches the edge of his, terrified. Jack can't help but **_  
_**laugh.**_

**NORTH**  
**Out of the way!**

_**The sleigh heads down a luge-like track. North and Jack are**_  
_**enjoying the ride.**_

**NORTH**  
**Hyah!**

**BUNNYMUND**  
**Ohhhhhh no!**

_**North cracks the reigns, the sleigh plummets, an almost**_  
_**vertical drop. Sandy holds his hands in the air like he is on a rollarcoaster. Jack loves this.**_  
_**Bunnymund - not so much.**_

**BUNNYMUND**  
**(walla)**  
**Slow down, slow down!**

"Faster! Faster!" a few of the village children were shouting, bouncing in their seats.

_**North pulls a lever, kicking the sleigh into overdrive. He**_  
_**looks back as the sleigh enters a corkscrew.**_

**NORTH**  
**I hope you like the loopty loops!**

**BUNNYMUND**  
**(nauseous)**  
**I hope you like carrots.**

Poppy made a face at that. Gross.

**NORTH**  
**Here we go!**

_**WIDE SHOT as the sleigh reaches the bottom of the ramp, and**_  
_**shoots upwards, launching them into bright blue sky**_

**JACK**  
**WOOO-HOOOOOO!**

**EXT. SLEIGH - FLYING THROUGH THE SKY - CONTINUOUS**  
_**North, reins in hand, leans into the wind as the reindeer**_  
_**climb higher.**_

**NORTH**  
**Klasno!**

_**Jack, in his element, leaps up onto the rear of the sleigh to**_  
_**watch the North Pole fade into the distance.**_

**JACK**  
**(laughs)**  
**Whoa!**

_**Bunnymund peaks off the side of the sleigh, then leans back,**_  
_**and holds on for dear life.**_

**JACK**  
**Hey, Bunny-**

_**Bunny turns to see Jack standing on the back edge of the**_  
_**sleigh.**_

**JACK**  
**Check out this view-**  
**EEEYAAAAGGHGHH!**

_**Jack is SWEPT OFF the sleigh and disappears!**_

"Jack!" Lucy exclaimed worriedly.

_**Bunny gasps in**_  
_**horror and looks over the side...only to see Jack lounging on**_  
_**the sleigh's skid.**_

**JACK**  
**Awww...you do care.**

Lucy relaxed again, a smile making it's way onto her face.

"Another trick." she murmured.

"He is his mother's son." James Overland laughed.

**BUNNYMUND**  
**Ah, rack off you bloody show pony!**

_**Bunny glowers as Jack makes his way back into the sleigh.**_

**NORTH**  
**Hold on everyone, I know a**  
**shortcut.**

**BUNNYMUND**  
**Oh strewth, I knew we should have**  
**taken the tunnels.**

_**North holds a snow globe up to his face.**_

**NORTH**  
**I say, Tooth Palace.**

_**An image of the Tooth Palace appears inside the snowglobe.**_  
_**North throws the globe into the air and a giant vortex opens.**_

**NORTH**  
**Hyah!**

**EXT. SKY - NEAR TOOTH'S PALACE**  
_**The sleigh suddenly comes out of HYPERDRIVE at the outskirts **_  
_**of the Tooth Palace. Streaks of black rapidly approaching.**_

**NORTH**  
**What!?**

Any good mood in the room vanished into worry. What was happening? What were those things?

_**Suddenly our heroes find themselves in the midst of mayhem, **_  
_**as hundreds of Nightmares and terrified Tooth Fairies jet **_  
_**past. It's like a meteor storm. North yanks the reins, and **_  
_**the sleigh veers sharply, dodging the oncoming Nightmares.**_

**NORTH **  
**What are they!?**

_**Sandy and Bunny duck the onslaught.**_

**BUNNYMUND**  
**Whoa!**

_**Jack now sees that the Nightmares are actually GULPING DOWN **_  
_**the fleeing fairies and flying off with them. It's chaos.**_

**JACK**  
**They're taking the tooth fairies!**

"Oh no!" Rose gasped, clapping a hand over her mouth. She, Anne, and Thomas sat close together.

_**Jack looks up to see a lone fairy with a Nightmare snapping **_  
_**at its heels**_

_**Jack leaps into the air and rescues it before **_  
_**the Nightmare can snatch it away.**_  
_**Jack lands back in the sleigh. He opens his hand to reveal **_  
_**Baby Tooth, who's shaking with fear.**_

**JACK**  
**Hey little Baby Tooth, you okay?**

"She hardly ever leaves Jack's side now." Emma chuckled.

_**As Baby Tooth nods, North steers the sleigh forward through **_  
_**the storm toward the entrance of Tooth's Palace.**_

**INT. TOOTH PALACE - A MOMENT LATER**  
_**A vast chamber supported by pillars containing millions of **_  
_**tiny wooden deposit boxes from floor to ceiling. North spots **_  
_**a Nightmare up ahead and hands Jack the reigns.**_

**NORTH**  
**Here, take over!**

Emily groaned playfully.

"Jack's a terrible driver!" she exclaimed.

**BUNNYMUND**  
**Huh?**

_**Jack, though surprised, quickly grabs the reigns and smiles **_  
_**as he snaps them.**_

**JACK**  
**Hyah!**

_**North readies his sword and SLICES the Nightmare in half -**_

**NORTH**  
**Yah!**

_**SEVERAL TOOTH BOXES spill out of the split Nightmare and rain **_  
_**down into the sleigh at the Guardians' feet. The Nightmare **_  
_**disintegrates into black sand.**_

**BUNNYMUND**  
**They're stealing the teeth!**

"Why?" Renee wondered in a soft tone.

_**Sandy looks at his hands and sees the Nightmare sand take **_  
_**shape and drift away.**_

_**He and Bunny exchange a look.**_  
_**The Guardians turn - they're headed straight for a pillar.**_

**NORTH**  
**Jack, look out!**

_**Jack pulls the reins -**_

**JACK**  
**Aaaahhhh!**

_**\- the sleigh nearly misses the pillar and skids to a rough **_  
_**stop on a platform. They see Tooth up above.**_

**NORTH**  
**Tooth! Are you alright?**

_**Tooth is flying around, visibly frustrated. This is bad.**_

**TOOTH**  
**They, they took my fairies!**  
**And the teeth! All of them!**  
**Everything is gone! Everything.**

The room was filled with anxiety. Why would Pitch steal the teeth?

_**Only then does it hit her. Tooth's wings drop in defeat. **_  
_**She's completely lost amidst the devastation. The Guardians **_  
_**rush to comfort her. Jack stays behind as Baby Tooth pops **_  
_**out from the hood of his tunic and flies over toward Tooth.**_

**TOOTH**  
**Oh thank goodness! One of you is **  
**alright!**

**PITCH (O.S.)**  
**I have to say, this is very, very**  
**exciting.**

_**Pitch's voice echoes across the open chamber. They look up to **_  
_**see Pitch, standing high above them with a satisfied smile.**_

**PITCH**  
**The Big Four, all in one place. **  
**I'm a little star-struck.**  
**(beat)**  
**Did you like my show on the globe, **  
**North? Got you all together, **  
**didn't I?**

"A trick." James Bennett spat.

"A cruel one at that." Emma agreed.

_**Tooth darts after Pitch, but he escapes into the shadows.**_

**TOOTH**  
**Pitch, you have got thirty seconds **  
**to return my fairies!**

**PITCH (O.S.)**  
**Or what?**

_**Tooth follows the sound of Pitch's voice and finds him near **_  
_**one of her tooth box columns.**_

**PITCH**  
**You'll stick a quarter under my **  
**pillow?**

**NORTH**  
**Why are you doing this?**

**PITCH**  
**Maybe I want what you have. To be **  
**believed in.**

_**Jack takes this in. Pitch moves along the walls and shadows **_  
_**of the chamber and emerges from behind a column.**_

**PITCH**  
**Maybe I'm tired of hiding under **  
**beds.**

**BUNNYMUND**  
**Maybe that's where you belong.**

**PITCH**  
**Ah, go suck an egg, rabbit!**

_**Bunny looks down past the edge of the platform to find Pitch**_  
_**upside down, staring him in the face. Pitch disappears again.**_

**PITCH (O.S.)**  
**Hang on, is that...Jack Frost?**  
**(laughs)**  
**Since when are you all so chummy?**

"He'd better not lay a finger on my son." Lucy hissed through her teeth. Emma winced. Her mother wasn't someone you wanted to anger.

**JACK**  
**We're not.**

**PITCH**  
**Oh good.**

_**Jack turns and sees Pitch standing in the middle of a column.**_

**PITCH**  
**A neutral party. Then I'm going to **  
**ignore you. But, you must be used **  
**to that by now.**

Colonial Burgess went dead silent. Partially out of anger, but partially in remembrance as well.

Sometimes they had ignored the shepherd boy. He had made it difficult, but when times were hardest they became so wrapped up in their own worries they forgot everything around them. Then he pulled them out of it, _made_ them see him and _made_ them remember that they had to have fun too. And no that he was gone... Who would do that? Even if he was a spirit, in their time he didn't remember. Who would make them remember?

**BUNNYMUND**  
**Pitch! You shadow sneaking ratbag!**

"Okay... Maybe he isn't so bad." James Bennett mumbled as the kangaroo leapt to his friend's defense.

**Come here!**

_**Bunny goes after Pitch, but he disappears and reemerges on an **_  
_**opposite column. Tooth spots him, grabs one of Bunny's **_  
_**boomerangs and flies at Pitch in a rage...**_

**TOOTH**  
**Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhh!**

_**Pitch looks at Tooth with a smile and before she can reach **_  
_**him, a huge Nightmare darts out of hiding and rears up at **_  
_**her. Tooth falls back.**_  
_**Baby Tooth hides in Jack's tunic.**_

**PITCH**  
**(soothing)**  
**Whoa! Hey, easy, girl. Easy.**

_**Pitch draws a wisp of black sand from Onyx's mane, twirls it **_  
_**in his palm, and turns toward Sandy.**_

**PITCH**  
**Look familiar, Sandman? Took me a **  
**while to perfect this little trick. **  
**Turning dreams into Nightmares.**

_**Pitch notices the shocked Guardians.**_

**PITCH**  
**Don't be nervous, it only riles **  
**them up more. They smell fear you **  
**know.**

**BUNNYMUND**  
**What fear? Of you!? No one's been **  
**afraid of you since the Dark Ages!**

_**Pitch's eyes flash with anger. But then he smiles.**_

**PITCH**  
**(nostalgic)**  
**Oh, the Dark Ages.**

**EXT. VILLAGE - NIGHT - FLASHBACK**  
_**A parent and her two children, huddled around a campfire, **_  
_**scream as a shadow, resembling Pitch, washes over them. It **_  
_**makes its way up the side of a mountain to reveal Pitch, **_  
_**smiling as he stares up at the moon.**_

**PITCH (V.O.)**  
**(nostalgic)**  
**Everyone frightened. Miserable. **  
**Such happy times for me.**  
**Oh, the **  
**power I wielded!**

**EXT. VILLAGE - NIGHT - FLASHBACK - CONTINUOUS**

**PITCH (V.O.)**  
**But then the Man in the Moon chose **  
**you to replace my fear with your **  
**wonder and light!**

"And a good thing too. People can do terrible things when they're afraid." Emma mumbled.

_**North's sleigh flies in front of the moon. Tooth and her **_  
_**fairies flit by while SANDY's Dreamsand dances across the sky **_  
_**and Bunny leaps across rooftops.**_

**PITCH (V.O.)**  
**Lifting their hearts!**  
**And giving them hope!**

**Pitch, thinner and weaker than he is now, slips back into the **  
**shadows after children run through him while playing in the **  
**streets, laughing as they go.**

**PITCH (V.O.)**  
**Meanwhile, everyone wrote me off as **  
**just a bad dream! "Oh, there's **  
**nothing to be afraid of! There's **  
**no such thing as the Boogeyman!"**

_**BACK TO THE TOOTH PALACE  
Pitch leans toward the Guardians, showing nothing but contempt.**_

**PITCH (CONT'D)**  
**Well that's all about to change.**

"I can't really say I blame him... From the looks of it he's been on his own longer than Jack was... I wouldn't wish that on anyone. If Jack had a mean bone in his body he could have turned out like... Well, that. I mean, he doesn't and he didn't but still." James Bennett pointed out.

_**A SOUND behind Pitch: one of the COLUMNS of the Palace begins **_  
_**to crack and crumble, as if decaying. Tooth is stunned...**_

**PITCH**  
**Oh look, it's happening already.**

**JACK**  
**What is?**

_**Tooth's eyes widen in shock.**_

**VIGNETTES OF CHILDREN AROUND THE WORLD**

**PITCH (V.O.)**  
**Children are waking up and **  
**realizing the Tooth Fairy never **  
**came.**

_**Lifting pillows and finding their BABY TEETH still there.**_

**PITCH (V.O.)**  
**I mean such a little thing, but to **  
**a child...**

_**PULL OUT from the last VIGNETTE, all the way out of TOOTH'S **_  
_**WIDE-OPEN EYE, and BACK TO SCENE. Jack, mystified, moves **_  
_**closer to Tooth as the palace continues to crumble.**_

**JACK**  
**What's going on?**

**TOOTH**  
**They, they don't believe in me **  
**anymore.**

**PITCH**  
**Didn't they tell you, Jack? It's **  
**great being a Guardian- but **  
**there's a catch.**  
**If enough kids **  
**stop believing, everything your **  
**friends protect - wonder, hopes and **  
**dreams - it all goes away. And **  
**little by little, so do they.**

"And they tried to make him join them? Goodness, he'd have faded away!" Emily shrieked.

"Calm down, they didn't realize it and they'd have saved him before that happened." Emma soothed.

_**Jack's realizes now the magnitude of Pitch's plan.**_

**PITCH**  
**No Christmas, or Easter, or little **  
**fairies that come in the night.**  
**There will be fear**  
**and darkness and me! It's your**  
**turn not to be believed in!**

_**Bunny throws his boomerangs at Pitch, who quickly ducks out **_  
_**of the way as they fly around the chamber columns. Pitch **_  
_**then jumps onto the back of Onyx down into the depths of the **_  
_**Palace. The Guardians dive after him, followed by Jack.**_  
_**Bunny grabs a set of egg bombs and launches them at Pitch, **_  
_**exploding seconds before Pitch hits the ground.**_

"This is bad, huh?" Poppy asked. Everyone nodded.

Very, very bad.


End file.
